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THE SCIENTIFIC STUDY
TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
THE SCIENTIFIC
STUDY & TEACHING
OF LANGUAGES
A REVIEW OF THE FACTORS AND PROBLEMS
CONNECTED WITH THE LEARNING AND
TEACHING OF MODERN LANGUAGES WITH
AN ANALYSIS OF THE VARIOUS METHODS
WHICH MAY BE ADOPTED IN ORDER TO
ATTAIN SATISFACTORY RESULTS
"By
HAROLD E. PALMER
ASSISTANT IN THE PHONETICS DEPARTMENT
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON
TONKERS-ON-HUDSON, NEW YORK
WORLD BOOK COMPANY
1917
THE RIVERSIDE PRESS LIMITED, EDINBURGH
GREAT BRITAIN
DEDICATORY PREFACE
London : January, 1917
To Monsieur Edouard Mathieu
My dear Mathieu,
There was once a time, in a past now very remote, when
you, Georges Bevemage, and I came together in conference.
All three attracted by the same subject and moved by the same
impulse, we passed our leisure in examining a particular aspect
of what we came to call ' the Linguistic Problem.'
During the course of our long walks in the Hertogenwald
Forest and of our wanderings on the Great Moor we would talk
of many things : of language and its nature, of the dialects
spoken around us, of sounds and spellings, of teaching and
learning, of teachers and pupils, of methods good, bad, and
indifferent.
They were heart-searching talks, for we were terribly in
earnest ; we judged and tested many theories, and found them
good or foimd them wanting.
Omr association in matters linguistic continued and developed.
At the Society Polyglotte or at the Mutuelle we would preach
reforms and carry glad tidings of phonetics, of ergonics, or of
semantics.
We would read Sweet, Jespersen, and Br^al, and comment on
what we read, we would discuss the latest articles in Le MaUre
PhonMigue and Modern Language Teaching. So free from
prejudice were we, and so open were our minds, that we would
accept and reject the doctrine of the Direct Method at least
once a year.
You AviU remember our search for the one true standard and
universal method, the goal that ever seemed so near, and yet
which ever proved just beyond our grasp. You will also
remember the day when we formulated our conclusion : Ce
6 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
n^est pas la mUhode qui nous manque ; ce qui nous manque
c'est la base mkne de la mithode. Out of this arose the question.
Does the Science of Linguistic Pedagogy eodst ? We regretfully
concluded that it did not.
You it was who exhorted me to go seriously to work with a
view to laying the foundations on which the science of language-
teaching might some day repose. You reminded me of the
exceptional facilities that I possessed for research work. You
pointed out that I had an unlimited number of all sorts and
conditions of pupils upon whom to practise and experiment,
that my position gave me full scope and liberty to innovate,
to amend, to modify, and to reform, and that I enjoyed a
special immunity from inspectors, directors, and objectors in
general.
Your advice was good ; I started on an organized series of
researches, submitting all sorts of methods to all sorts of tests
under experimental conditions. The normal ' preventive '
course was diffei^entiated from the special ' corrective ' course ;
the ergonic method gradually developed, although then without
a nariie ; the replacing of the traditional orthography by the
phonetic transcription produced the splendid results that we
had foreseen ; three distinct methods of ' conversation drill '
resulted in fluency with accuracy ; the respective principles of
the ' Microcosm,' of ' Catenizing,' and of ' Substitution ' began
to stand out clearly, and various types of exercises were de-
signed, each one having its appropriate and distinct function to
perform.
Eight or nine years have passed since then ; several times I
have been on the point of making known the results of these
experiments, but on each occasion I have realized that this
would have been a premature step. There were, as you know,
gaps in the chain of reasoning, there was a lack of co-ordination
between the various parts, there were ' previous questions ' still
unanswered, and my data were voliuninous but not well pro-
portioned.
During all this ^;ime your new career deprived me to a large
extent of yoiu- help and collaboration, but you would still at
times listen with a patient ear while I outlined the latest
DEDICATORY PREFACE 7
developments of these many systems of teaching and the results
of the latest phase of each. Your shrewd comments served to
crystallize into concrete form what had hitherto been nebulous,
and your suggestions would inspire me to new activities.
More recently I have been successful in isolating the several
factors of which the simi constitutes what we used to call le
disespoir du dibutant. This has resulted in the respective
principles of ' Segregation,' ' Passive Work,' and ' Subconscious
Comprehension.'
In the meantime, however, the tragic events of August 1914,
commencing by the sudden and unexpected irruption of the
invaders in the streets of our town, put an end to our associa-
tion, and, incidentally, deprived me of the documents that I
had so laboriously collected. Some months passed before I
was able to pick up the threads of the work so dramatically
interrupted.
When I did so, it was in another place and with another
environment. The conditions were not unfavourable, and I
was enabled to gain a first-hand knowledge of linguistic methods
as practised in England. What struck me most here was to find
such abimdant signs of a new spirit in the language-teaching
world. The whole atmosphere seems charged with new and
healthy ideas ; these are spreading sporadically from I do not
know how many centres ; there is an unmistakable movement
toward what we have termed scientific and what others term
organized methods. For the first time in my experience I have
the satisfaction and relief to find myself in agreement with a
large and increasing number of my contemporaries.
A few months ago I had the pleasure of reviewing a book
entitled How to Learn a Language.^ In this the author states
and explains those principles to which we gave the names of
' Catenizing,' ' Immediate Fluency,' and ' Substitution.'
In the current number of Modern Language Teaching ^
appears the review of a recent publication. In this most inspir-
ing article (every word of which I enthusiastically endorse) the
writer sets forth some of my most cherished ideas. The book
* By Thomas F. Cummings, D.D., New York.
^ December, 1916. By S. A. Richards.
8 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
which is the object of his review* enunciates principles in
favour of which I have long striven, and exposes some of the
identical fallacies which it has been my joy to pillory.
In short, I am confident that we are not far from the day when
our aspirations will be realized, and when we shall see, not the
one universal standard method of our earlier dreams, but one
universal set of principles from which will be derived a number
of methods, each perfectly adapted to the particular end which
it is designed to serve.
In a recent letter you. ask me for the latest news concerning
the work in which you were so interested. You ask whether I
have succeeded in correlating the various aspects of the problem
in one homogeneous system of linguistic pedagogy. My answer
takes the form of the present book. I have been able to recon-
struct the body of it from memory, and to augment the original
documents by a large quantity of new material, and have finally
ventured to submit it as my contribution to the literature of
linguistic pedagogy.
I have not been entirely without assistance during this last
stage ; two friends of mine, Mr A. B. Winnifrith, M.A. (Principal
of Clapham Grammar School), and Mr Thomas Beach (Kilbum
Granmiar School), to whom my most cordial thanks are due for
their timely help, have given me some valuable hints and have
helped me in many ways. Mr J. E. Mansion (Educational
Adviser to the publishers of this book) and others have very
kindly helped me considerably in what is to me the intolerable
burden of the revision and reading of proofs.
In conclusion, my dear Mathieu, I dedicate to you this
volume, in remembrance of the happy period of our first colla-
boration, as a token of our common interest in an engrossing
subject, and as a mark of that sympathy which has always
subsisted between us.
Harold E. Palmer
1 The Teaching of Modern Foreign Languages by the Organised Method,
by Hardress O'Grady.
CONTENTS
PART PAGE
SYNOPSIS 11
I. INTRODUCTORY 19
II. THE NATURE OF LANGUAGE 29
III. PRELIMINARY FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC
PEDAGOGY 47
IV. THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDA-
GOGY 71
V. AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 138
VI. SPECIAL PROGRAMMES 225
VII. THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 238
Vin. THE STUDENT 268
IX. CONCLUSION 281
APPENDIX I : CONDENSED AND AB-
RIDGED SCHEME FOR A FRENCH
ERGONIC CHART 282
APPENDIX II : GLOSSARY 309
APPENDIX III : LIST OF PHONETIC SYM-
BOLS 319
INDEX 328
SYNOPSIS
In order to facilitate reference, the consecutive numbered
paragraphs of this synopsis serve as headings to the consecutive
thirty-nine Sections of this book.
PART I : INTRODUCTORY
Section 1. — ^Does the science of language-study exist?
(P 19.)
Section 2. — Evidence of various kinds shows that this subject
has not yet attained the scientific stage, but is so far in the
experimental or empirical stage. (P. 19.)
Section 3. — It is time that language-study should be placed
on a scientific foundation, and to that effect it would be
well to institute a general inquiry into the whole question.
(P. 21.)
Section 4. — ^The results of our inquiry must necessarily be
of interest to method- writers, to teachers, and to students.
(P. 24.)
PART II : THE NATURE OF LANGUAGE
Section 5. — ^Language is a series of natural phenomena.
(P 29.)
Section 6. — ^Language is distinct from the art of literature.
(P. 30.)
Section 7. — ^Language consists essentially of lexicological
units popularly supposed to be words, but the term word is
vague and impossible of definition. (P. 32.)
Section 8. — ^What is called a word generally proves to be but
an accident of graphic continuity. (P. 37. )
Section 9. — Let us rather speak of Lexicological Units, and
II
12 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
note that they may be Monologs, Polylogs, Miologs, or Alogisms.
(P. 89.)
Section 10. — ^Let us classify these units according to the
respective principles of Morphology (with its subdivisions).
Semantics, and Ergonics. (P. 42.)
PART III : PRELIMINARY FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC
PEDAGOGY
Section 11. — A complete and ideal language method has a
fourfold object, and this is to enable the student, in the shortest
possible time and with the least effort, so to assimilate the materials
of which the foreign language is composed that he is thereby enabled
to understand what he hears and reads, and also to express himself
correctly both by the oral and written mediums. (P. 47.)
Section 12. — In order to determine the best programme for
a given student, we must take into consideration four subjec-
tive factors : (a) The student ; (6) his previous study of the
language; (c) his preliminary equipment; (d) his incentive.
(P 48.)
Section 13. — ^We must also take into consideration five objec-
tive factors : (a) The language to be studied ; (b) the orienta-
tion of the study ; (c) the extent of the study ; (d) the degree
of the study; (e) the manner of the study. (P. 58.)
PART IV: THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC
PEDAGOGY
When we are in possession of full information concerning
the student and his aim we may prescribe for him an appro-
priate programme of study. This programme will be drawn
up more or less in accordance with a series of principles which
we may term the Principles of Linguistic Pedagogy. (P. 71.)
Section 14. — The Fourfold Aim of the Student. In all but
special cases the ultimate aim of the student is presumed to be
fourfold — namely,
(a) The iincierstanding of the language as spoken by natives.
SYNOPSIS IS
(6) The understanding of the language as written by
natives.
(c) The speaking of the language as spoken by natives.
(d) The writing of the language as written by natives.
(P. 71.)
Section 15. — Segregation. In order to exclude confusion and
misunderstanding, during the initial period of conscious study
the phonetic, orthogra,phic, etymological, semantic, and ergonic
aspects of language must be segregated from each other and
taught independently. In the process of subconscious study,
and in the later periods of conscious study, such segregation is
neither possible nor desirable. (P. 72.)
Section 16. — Active v. Passive Work. Study may be active
or passive. The yoimg child only comes to speak his native
language after an " incubation period,' during which he has
passively received and stored up in his mind a considerable
quantity of linguistic material. The same process may profit-
ably be employed by the adult person in the study of foreign
languages. (P. 75.)
Section 17. — Semanticizing {i.e. the conveying of meanings).
There are four different manners or modes of conveying to
the pupil the meaning of a given unit.
(A) By material association — i.e. associating the unit
with that which is designated by it.
(B) By translation — i.e. associating the unit with the
equivalrait native unit.
(C) By definition — i.e. associating the unit with its defini-
tion or paraphrase (i.e. its polylogical equivalent).
(D) By context — i.e. giving examples of its use. (P. 77.)
Section 18. — Learning by Heart (i.e. memorizing or caten-
izing). Learning by heart is the basis of all linguistic study, for
every sentence ever uttered or written by anybody has either
been learnt by heart in its entirety or else has been composed
(consciously or subconsciously) from smaller luiits, each of
which must at one time have been learnt by heart. We may
14 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
term primary matter all units learnt by heart integrally, and
secondary matter all units built up or derived by the pupil from
primary matter. {P. 108.)
Section 19. — Gradation. In order that the pupil may pro-
ceed by the line of least resistance, he should pase from
the known to the unknown by easy stages, each of which
will serve as a preparation for the one immediately following.
(P. 119.)
Section 20. — The Microcosm. In order that the pupil may
reach the ' point of transition ' with the least delay, the
vocabulary must be selected with the greatest care and per-
spicacity ; it should include none but the commonest and most
characteristic units, representing the most important ergonic
classes. A vocabulary of this nature may be termed the
Quintessence or the Microcosm of the language. This Micro-
cosm should be formed and organized systematically in accord-
ance with and as a compromise between the principles of
Frequency, Ergonic Combination, Concreteness, Proportion,
and General Expediency. (P. 122.)
Section 21. — Subconscious Comprehension. The pupil's
powers of subconscious (or immediate) comprehension will be
developed concurrently with his conscious study of the micro-
cosm, and quite independently of the matter contained ^'
therein. (P. 131.)
PART V : AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME
Having reviewed the main principles of Linguistic Pedagogy,
we will now endeavour to draw up a working programme
embodying the conclusions suggested by our inquiry. We
wUl consider as a standard programme that which will prove
to be the most suitable for school-children. It will comprise
the study of the foreign language (which we will assume
to be French) in its oral and written aspects with a view
to active and passive use. The whole period of study will be
divided into three stages. (P. 138,)
SYNOPSIS 15
Section 22. — ^The first or elementary stage, of the duration
of at least one term, will consist of :
(a) Easy exercises in subconscious comprehension,
(fe) Imperative drill.
(c) Easy articulation exercises.
(d) Easy exercises in the use of phonetic symbols.
(e) Simple talks on the five lexicological theories. (P. 138.)
Section 23. — The second or intermediate stage, of the duration
of from one to three years (according to the radius of the
microcosm), will consist of :
(a) More advanced exercises in subconscious compre-
hension.
(6) Articulation and fluency exercises.
(c) The assimilation of primary matter by means of
various catenizing devices.
(d) The production of secondary matter by means of a
large number of varied exercises based on etymology,
semantics, and ergonics.
During this stage the traditional spelling will be introduced
and taught by means of various types of orthoepic exercises.
(P. 168.)
Section 24. — The third or advanced stage, of the duration of
from one to three years, will complete the scholastic training
of the pupil. It will consist of :
(a) Subconscious work (rapid reading, mental and oral ;
listening to talks, stories, and lectures).
(b) Free composition (descriptions of objects, pictures, and
events).
(c) Free translation (French into English and English
into French).
(d) Conversation.
(e) Systematic study of texts. (P. 198.).
Section 25. — We may append here a comprehensive and
descriptive list of most of the types of exercises which will be
found of use during the three stages. While many of them
are suitable for work in the class-room, they will generally
16 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
be utilized as material for homework and for private study.
(P. 207.)^^
PART VI : SPECIAL PROGRAMMES
Section 26.— In that part of this book devoted to the Pre-
liminary Factors of Linguistic Pedagogy, we have seen that no
one programme can possibly be ideally suitable for all classes of
students ; hence, in addition to the Standard Programme that
we have just described, we must be prepared to draw up Special
Programmes. Limited Programmes of various tjrpes are de-
signed to meet the special requirements of those whose aim is
less than the four aspects of a given language. (P 225.)
Section 27. — A Documentary Programme is designed to meet
ttie special requirements of those whose aim is not the assimila-
tion of a language in any or all of its aspects, but a documentary
knowledge only. (P. 228.)
Section 28. — Corrective Programmes are designed to meet the
special requirements of those who have previously studied the
language in so disproportionate a manner that one or more of
the four aspects has, or have been, totally or partially neglected,
or of those who have previously studied the language in so
defective a manner that the imsound knowledge so acquired
will have to be converted into sound knowledge. (P. 230.)
PART VII : THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER
Section 29. — The first qualifications of the expert teacher are
a knowledge of the foreign language and of the student's native
tongue, and the ability to organize the programme, to choose
the appropriate material and the most appropriate means of
conveying and of inculcating it. (P. 238.)
Section 30. — ^Another function of the teacher is to furnish
explanations. (P. 243.)
Section 31. — The vehicular language for all explanatory
matter should be that which is best known by the student.
(P. 249.)
Section 32. — ^The teacher should foster and encourage the
SYNOPSIS 17
pupils' capacities of visualization by adopting for explanatory
purposes the principle of visual correlation. (P. 251.)
Section 33. — Further functions of the teacher are :
(a) To cause or to stimulate the pupil to work.
(6) To give the pupil opportunities of hearing the language
spoken, and to act the part of second person in a
conversation,
(c) To act as examiner, to award marks, and to correct
errors. (P. 261.)
Section 34. — A very important function of the teacher is to
react against the six vicious tendencies to which all students are
more or less subject. (P- 263.)
Section 35. — In order to perform effective work, the teacher
(or student) should have at his disposal an adequate number of
the right sort of instruments in the form of a practical library
for reference and other purposes. (P. 265.)
PART VIII : THE STUDENT
Section 36. — ^There are two categories of students who are
necessarily the architects of their own programme or method :
(a) Those who are unable to command the services of any
teacher whatever.
(6) Those to whom the services of casual or non-expert
teachers are alone available. (P. 268.)
Section 37. — ^The relations between teacher and student in
point of authority can only be determined in accordance with
certain delicate factors, among which are the relative degree of
expertness possessed or claimed by either, the particular end
that the student has in view, and the inducement which the
pupil is prepared to offer in order to secure the unconditional
and unqualified services of a docile teacher. (P. 272.)
Section 38. — ^The least satisfactory tj^e of student is the one
who has neither confidence in the programme suggested by the
teacher nor the capacity for working out one of his own. He is
18 STtTDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
the source of constant trouble, and we should do well to advise
him to seek another teacher. (P. 274,)
PART IX : CONCLUSION
Section 39. — May all those who have followed us in our
inquiry so unite and co-ordinate their efforts that language-
teaching and language-study shall be placed once for all on a
stable and scientific basis. (P. 281.)
THE SCIENTIFIC STUDY &>
TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
PART I
INTRODUCTORY
Section 1.— Does the science of language-study exist P
Does the science of language-study exist ? "Of course it
exists ! " some readers may answer. " Was it not initiated,
created, discussed, fought for, and finally established by the
leaders of the Reform Movement years ago ? Is not the -
principle of the Direct Method an accomplished fact ? Have - -
we not witnessed the introduction, growth, and triumph of the
Phonetic principle ? Do we not find the text-books of the
science of language-study in every teacher's library ? Has it not i
been proved that grammar should be taught inductively, that i
translation is a delusion, that the dictionary is a snare ? Has
not " the aunt of the Dutchman in the garden of the baker's
brother " been consigned to the limbo of forgotten things ?
Are w^e not living in the age of object-lessons, pictures, and the
total exclusion of the mother tongue ? Are we not . . . ? "
Just so, just so ; all these things have come to pass, and many
others also ; reforms have been effected, many bad things (and
some good things) have been swept away, many good things
(and some bad things) have apparently come to stay.
Section 2.— Evidence of various kinds shows that this subject has
not yet attained the scientific stage, but is so far in the experi-
mental or empirical stage.
If the science of language-study exists and is generally re-
cognized in the same way that other sciences are recognized, then
the majority of trained teachers will be found to be working
19
20 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
on the same lines, differing only in minor details. But the
most superficial inquiry tends to show that the methods of
teaching adopted in any one country are almost as numerous
as the teachers themselves ; that each conscientious teacher
has his own particular views on the subject and is prepared to
maintain them against all comers ; that the divergences of views
are not on questions of detail, but are based on totally different
caB:6eptions of the whole problem.
/If the science of language-study exists, it must have
been founded in accordance with the scientific method,
which is :
(a) To collect isolated facts and factors in such numbers
as to cover the whole field of inquiry.
(b) To classify, examine, and correlate them.
(c) To draw from them certain conclusions upon which
the fundamental principles may be established and
stated in categoric terms.
(d) To confirm and justify these principles by putting them
to the test of actual and continual practice.
Has this been done ?
If the study of language is a science, countless isolated facts
covering the whole field of inquiry must have been collected,
sifted, and correlated ; valid conclusions must have been drawn
in such a manner that the principles of the science have stood
forth, each clear, unequivocal, and unassailable.
If the study of language is a science, a scientific terminology
must have been formed and must exist, consisting of an adequate
number of terms both old and new, all accurately defined by
the creators of such terms and perfectly understood by all who
use them.
If the study of language is a science, then definite and com-
plete answers must exist to a vast number of vexed questions
of which the following are specimens :
What is the function of the teacher ? — of the pupil ? — of the
book ? — of the exercise ? What do you understand by Transla-
tion ? — ^by Grammar ? — ^by Semantics ? — by Function ? — ^by
Words ?— by Direct Method ? How many types of exercise
INTRODUCTORY 21
exist, and how may they be classified ? What are the main
differences between a ' preventive ' and a ' curative ' language
course ? What are the various vicious tendencies toward
which all language-learners are more or less inclined, and which
are the most efficacious means of reacting against each ?
Under what conditions is the use of the mother tongue per-
missible ? — ^reprehensible ? On what principles should the
author of a language method choose the material to be presented
and taught ? To what extent should the reference-book and
language method be combined ? Problem-solving v. Memoriz-
ing the solutions to problems : when should the pupils do either,
and Why ? Upon what axiom must we base all considerations
of language-study ?
If the study of language is a science, then where is the text-
book which will give us the answers, the true answers, the
logically reasoned answers to these and to hundreds of similar
questions of equal importance ?
If we follow out this train of reasoning and reflect seriously
on the varied aspects suggested by the above questions, we
must inevitably come to the conclusion that the study of
language learning has not yet emerged from the empirical stage,
that we are still groping our way in a labyrinth of factors the
extent and nature of which we are only just dimly beginning to
realize, that our progress is hindered at every step by undefined
and ambiguous terms, that our way is beset by side issues,
down which we wander and lose ourselves anew.
The science of language-study does not exist, but it is high
time that it should exist.
Section 3.— It is time that language-study should be placed on a
scientific foundation, and to that effect it would be well to in-
stitute a general inquiry into the whole question.
The main object of this book is to sketch out the lines upon
which research work might well be undertaken, to suggest a
suitable terminology, to set forth the data which the writer
has collected over a period of sixteen years' work, both as
teacher and as student, and to state the conclusions which he
has drawn from them.
22 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
To lay the foundations of the science of language-study it
will not be necesSary to make new discoveries ; it will be quite
sufficient to collect factors which are perfectly well known and
to co-ordinate them into one comprehensive system. Of data
we have a sufficiency ; philologists tell us what language is,
phoneticians can give us the most accuraj^e information con-
cerning soxmds and the methods of teachinp['them>mnst of the
essential facts of grammar can be explained clearly by gram-
marians, and the nature of words, including their et5Tnological,
morphological, semantic, and ergonic aspects, is already known
to the lexicologist. Modem pedagogy has shown us the value
-t)f concretization, and psychologists can supply us with all the
data we require concerning the laws of memory. Our new
science will consist of a compilation of facts culled from these
several domains, but placed in such order and with such
observance of proportion that the inevitable conclusions will
suggest themselves. If our facts are right, and if no essential
fact is missing, our conclusions must be vaUd. Most of our
facts will so bear the imprint of obviousness that their citation
will border on the trivial, and yet it is only by insisting on the
perfectly obvious that we can arrive not merely at dogmatisms,
but at valid conclusions.
Our survey of the problems must be on a most comprehensive
basis ; we must not be content with stating formulae for the
teaching of French to English children; our outlook must
embrace the study of any aspect of any foreign language by
students of all ages and nationaUties. We shall certainly not
discover any one royal road to success, but we may in all prob-
ability determine a number of paths, each being the shortest
and easiest route to the particular end toward which it is
intended to lead us.
In comparing various processes of study or tricks of pedagogy
we must be careful not always to apply them to problems that
we have already overcome, but to test them by problems in
languages which are strange to us. A difficulty once overcome
appears in its new perspective of so simple a nature that we
wonder however it could have seemed so formidable. Those
who use French verbs or German adjectives with that complete
INTRODUCTORY 23
unconsciousness that can only result from a perfect mastery-
fail to realize the months of patient effort devoted to their
study. Most of us have the illusion that these and other things
came to us naturally and automatically. That is why the
language that we are learning always seems far more difficult
than any of those which we have already learnt. It has often
been stated quite seriously that some of the more modem forms
of artificial language (in reality the quintessence of logic and
simplicity) are more difficult of acquisition than German or
Russian. The fancied facility of difficulties overcome by us
can only be compared with the fancied difficulties of problems
in store for us.
A teacher is impatient because a pupil cannot memorize a
French sentence in five minutes ; let that same teacher en-
deavour in five minutes to memorize a sentence of correspond-
ing length in Arabic or Chinese, and he wiU discover that his
impatience was ill warranted.
The familiar must necessarily give an impression of facility,
just as the unfamiliar conveys an impression of extreme
difficulty.
For this reason the reader should not consider as superfluous
the various devices and exercises suggested as methods of over-
coming certain difficulties in French or any other language
perfectly known to him ; before pronouncing them efforts to
enfoncer des partes ouvertes, let him apply them to the mastery
of problems pertaining to Finnish or Swahili.
Our inquiry might take the form of a comprehensive account
of all the language methods in use in all coimtries and in all
ages ; it might include detailed reports gathered from an
analytic examination of the various linguistic programmes
followed in schools both in England and abroad. But in view
of the extremely divergent character of all methods of language-
study, and of the seeming absence of any really fimdamental
principles, it will probably be more to the point if we first
endeavour to ascertain the basic principles upon which an ideal
method should be founded.
24 STUDY AJSTD TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Section 4.— The results of our inquiry must necessarily be of interest
to method-writers, to teachers, and to students.
j The science of language-study must necessarily be of the
/highest interest to all engaged in the teaching or the learning of
foreign languages.
These fall under three headings : (1) Writers of methods ;
(2) teachers ; (3) students.
In most methods or text-books destined to convey the
material of a language to the student we find a preface in which
the author implies that his particular work is superior to all
others.
If we submit to a critical analysis the various arguments
. employed and the various reasons adduced, we must come to the
conclusion that every one of these works is well meant and that
the intentions of each author are admirable.
Each claims to follow the line of least resistance, and each
asserts or more modestly hints that his way is the one true
way.
One will show that his method is based on Grammar and
must therefore be sound.
Another will call attention to his system of imitated pro-
nunciation, or ' phonetics,' as he miscalls it.
Others will confess that no written characters can possibly
convey any notion of the true pronimciation of a language and
therefore abandon all idea of making them do so.
In another case the author is proud to annoimce that as
translation is an untrustworthy process, the meanings of the
words are given by definition and the use of the mother tongue
entirely avoided.
In the contrary case stress is laid on the fact that every
word is accompanied by its translation.
Some of these books are based on literary and etymological
considerations.
Others give such a full treatment to the phonetic aspect that
all the other aspects seem to have been forgotten.
Others claim to teach the most difiicult language within a
stated period ; six months it may be, or six weeks. These
seem to be based on the assiunption that the pupil will be
INTRODUCTORY 25
prepared to work twelve hours a day and is incapable of for-
getting a single fact once read.
We find guides and manuals, companions and helps, all
implicitly claiming to be based on common-sense principles.
This provokes the obvious question ; What are common-
sense principles ? Is it sufficient for an author to compile a list
of some few thousand words and their '-translations,' supply
a few dozens of fragmentary ' rules,' and garnish with a hundred
or so ' exercises ' ?
Has the method-maker done his duty by taking some tfext
more or less literary, adorning it with comments and * notes,'
and appending a vocabulary ? Is it sufficient to furnish the
rules of grammar and syntax and to call these the ' directions
for use ' of the language in question ?
A favourite proceeding seems to be to work out a niunber
of formulae (unknown to the native users of the language
themselves) and to invite the students to convert these
into living speech. A few examples are thrown in as a make-
weight ; not many, for fear of dulling the intellectual faculties
of the pupil and tempting him to memorize instead of to
think!
Is it a common-sense principle to treat the student as though
he were a child about to embark on the study of his mother
tongue ?
Many of these methods are not at all badly composed ; some
of them are excellent. As far as they go, some of them succeed
in their aims. Some people do succeed in learning foreign
languages by their aid.
But a careful analysis will bring to our minds one evident
conclusion: that there exist op^aierally accepted principlesj ,
at all. There appears to be no distinct notion in the minds oa
the authors as to what the function of a language method is,
no conception of the real work it is destined to perform and at
what point the student is presumed to fly with his own wings.
We gain an impression of praiseworthy efforts clashing one
with another and of a general haziness and lack of co-ordinated
system.
It is not astonishing, after all, that this should be so. The
26 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
qualifications of a method-writer are often no more than a
knowledge of two languages and the desire to make a book.
A missionary goes to some distant land and spends some years
there in the exercise of his calling. Incidentally he learns the
native language, an imwritten idiom, little known, one of those
dialects which, in the absence of any dictionary or other written
documentation, has to be ' picked up.' Linguistic work is not
his profession ; he is no phonetician and his knowledge of
linguistics is based on recollections of his Latin and Greek
grammars. With laudable endeavour and patience he will
write a book for the benefit of those who come after him.
What can be expected of such a book ? In other professions
many years of intensive training are required, training in theory
and practice based on accepted and incontrovertible facts ;
in the profession of method-WTiting no training at all would
appear necessary.
When the author is not a phonetician, and is ignorant of the
simplest laws of lexicology, when he has no clear idea of the
functions of a method, when he is no psychologist and ignores
the laws of memory, when he is even ignorant of the true nature
of language, is it surprising that the result of his labours shoidd
savour more of rule of thumb than of science, and should bear
on every page the mark of the amateur ?
And yet it certainly must be possible to write a language
method on scientific principles ; it must be possible to discover
beyond any doubt what really is the line of least resistance ;
it should surely be feasible to codify the himdreds of complex
factors in the problem and to arrive at certain conclizsions
concerning them.
I The reformation and standardization of language-study must
/ be effected primarily through the writer of methods, for a
rational book, properly conceived and efficiently worked out,
/ will show the teacher what to do, and when and how to do it,
and the teacher in his turn will convey the results to the pupils.
For those reasons, for the sake of progress in a little-
understood subject, for the sake of ' unified knowledge,' it is
important that method-makers should come to an understand-
ing ; that the " ploughing of lonely furrows ' should be replaced
INTRODUCTORY 27
by co-ordinated efforts to discover the best means and to adapt
these means to the right end.
The teacher is often himself a method-writer ; if he is not,
he is generally a method-criticizer, for it is comparatively rare
to find a teacher in complete agreement with the views of the
author of the book he uses. The function of a teacher, how-
ever, differs from that of a method- writer. The difference bears
an analogy to that existing between the tactician and the
strategist.
The method-maker may work at his writing-desk or in his
arm-chair ; the teacher works in front of his class. It is the
latter who is the personal link between the chooser of material
and those who are destined to assimilate it.
Many factors in language teaching concern the teacher alone ;f
the question of speed, the problems of cohesion, of stimulus, and
of articulation are more particularly his. It is he also who
has to carry out in actual practice the principles of concretiza-
tion, of memorizing, of catenizing, and a host of other essential
pedagogic processes. And he, like the methodrwriter, seems
to work according to no fixed principles. He chooses the text-
book, works out a programme, presents matter, provides
exercises and tests, corrects mistakes, blames, congratulates or
encourages, often without any clear notion of any determined
starting-point or of any precise idea as to th.e particular end
toward which he is supposed to be working. He cannot well
do otherwise : if he works unsystematically it is because there
exist few or no principles in system. If he suffers from a lack
of training, it is because there exists no school or institution
for the training of teachers.
Much has been written on the need of training ; indeed it is
obvious that a teacher without training in practical linguistics
is in the same position as a doctor without clinical experience or
a solicitor unversed in legal procedure.
Many congresses have been held, many reports have been
written, the subject can boast a literature, and yet apart from
that branch coimected with phonetics we may search in vain
for any text-book treating the subject comprehensively from
starting-point to finish.
28 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
j To the adult student of language the conclusions to be drawn
I from our inquiry must also be of the highest importance. If it
is shown that fully three-quarters of the efforts that he devotes
to study are not only ineffectual but are positively mischievous
in their effects, if it can be proved that with less work a better
result may be obtained, and if we can show how best he may
utilize his effort by directing it into right channels, it will
Obviously be to his interest to become acquainted with the
data we shall have collected, and the conclusions to which
they point.
PART II
THE NATURE OF LANGUAGE
Section 5.— Language is a series of natural phenomena.
Language is the medium by which thoughts are conveyed
from one person to another, consequently all words or combina-
tions of words used orally or by writing must be considered as
coming within the scope of language. It matters little to the
student of linguistics whether any particular word or expression
is sanctioned by classical authority ; slang and pedantism,
vulgarism and flower of speech, elegant expression and coarse
metaphor, all these from the moment that they serve as effective
mediums of thought are elements of language.
Language is the mirror of thought (if only the distorting
mirror), and both reflector and reflected are conventional. In
spite of the efforts of Pascal and Descartes, neither language
nor thought is philosophical. Were it so, the units of thought
would be fixed quantities, Roget's Thesaurus would be the
universal text-book, and each operation of the mind would be
a valid syllogism.
And there would be no more wrangling.
Thought is irregular, its concepts or units are irregular, there
are redundancies and lacunae, in all terms but the mathematical
there is ambiguity, the declarative and the emotional are
hopelessly involved, and mis^mderstanding is the rule and not
the exception.
We are probably not yet civilized enough to have learnt to
think.
Language is the dim reflection of thought, and, paradoxically
enough, it is at the same time the instrument of thought.
To fit the word to the thought in our own native language is
at times a thankless task, but when we compare our English
concepts with those manufactured abroad, doing so perforce
30 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
with the medium of those impossible national units called words,
it is a marvel that the machinery of thought does not break
down under the strain.
Each language possesses a set of terms called words ; these
may be combined and recombined into propositions and thereby
thought becomes manifest to all who have learnt to play with
the same set of counters. But when we go to the foreign
country, or when the foreigner comes to ours, we find that we
are playing with counters that have no currency. Hence the
language problem.
Universal language would replace the diverse national
counters or coinages by one international system of general
currency. International language would produce a convenient
auxiliary coinage easily convertible into the various national
systems.
At present, however, language stands in the domain of natural
phenomena, its development and evolution generally depend,
not on the artifice of man but upon the dictates of fashion. We
speak, not-according to abstract laws of logic ; we simply speak
as others speak. It is the exception rather than the rule for
man to make the words he uses ; he is content to use the words
that have already obtained currency in that particular part of
the globe in which he finds himself.
The only aspect of language in which the conscious will of
man can manifest itself is that concerned with its graphic
representation. The alphabetic aspect alone is artificial ; the
literary aspect is artistic, the rest, is natural science.
Section 6.— Language is distinct from the art of literature.
There must necessarily be a fundamental difference between
language and literature. In spite of this difference the two
terms have become almost inextricably mixed in the minds of
the uninitiated ; when we discuss questions connected with
language, most people immediately turn the subject into the
channel of literature.
How many people really study pure philology, language 1
How many really know anything about it ? And yet every-
body who has been to college imagines himself qualified to
THE NATURE OF LANGUAGE 81
pronounce the most definite opinion on the subject. What
people generally learn is the literary aspect of language, either
their own or foreign.
Literature is an application of the linguistic science, but it is \
not the science itself. Literature is the history and practice
of the written form of a language which has become classical.
It is even maintained by many that a language which has no
written form is not a language ! It has often been stated that
language does not exist apart from the written characters of
orthographic tradition !
The linguistic science known as philology is a comparatively
recent one ; it is as yet barely a century old. It began when it
was discovered that languages are subject to evolution in sound,-
in formj and in meaning, it began when it was discovered that
each language possessed a parent language from which it had
come by slow evolutionary change. For, one day, the truth
began to dawn on the minds of the thinkers that not only had
French been gradually evolved from the popular Latin of Gaul,
and that Italian and other Romance languages were modem
offshoots of Latin, but that every language possessed at least
one parent, that Latin itself, instead of being a god-given speech,
was simply the daughter of some unknown mother, that Greek
was not fatherless, that there are children languages and
ancestral languages, that there are sister languages, and that
languages possess uncles and cousins !
And so the pure science of language was founded (founded on
phonetics, by the way, although phonetics was in a rudimentary
state at the time). Literature was found to be, not language
itself, but an aspect of language, intimately connected with it
but stiU merely an application, the decorative side of language.
Let us remember, however; that literature has always been
par excellence a pedagogic study, that this subject has centuries
of tradition behind it, whereas philology is modern, only studied
by the few, and is not yet a current or obUgatory subject. At
school or at college we only study the literary aspect of language.
We study the classical authors, we justify our forms and phrases
by the literary models. We learn grammar, but the grammar
we study is only the collection of classical models of the written
32 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
language. The French Academy reigns over the French
language considered as literature ; it is a literary and not a
philological authority. We might even say literature is the
artificial aspect of language ; those who make use of hterary
forms when speaking are said to ' speak like a book ' ; we feel
these forms to be unreal ? Beautiful ? Yes, beautiful, but not
the normal colloquial speech of everyday life.
Now, as we would not consult a sculptor on a question of
geology and as we would not quote an artist as an authority on
colour chemistry nor maintain that the best singer is at the samff
time the best throat specialist, we must not quote the opinions
of litterateurs, of professors of literature, nor even of gram-
marians, and produce these opinions as proofs of philological'
truths or untruths. We must not claim or proclaim Acade-
micians as philological experts, because they are not, and
they do not pretend to be. They know (or they ought to
know, if they have received an elementary scientific education)
that literature is not language, nor language literature.
The learning of foreign languages must proceed on a philo-
logical basis and not on a literary one, because before we can
learn the foreign literature we must be acquainted with the
language itself, just as when we started learning the literary
form of our own tongue we were already acquainted with the ,
language itself.
Section 7.— Language consists essentially of lexicological units
popularly supposed to be 'words,' but the term 'word' is vague
and impossible of definition.
Considered from the point of view of the student, the study
of language is synonymous with the study of the elements or
units of which it is composed. These units are popularly
assumed to be words. *
A general and vague idea exists that the study of a given
language should proceed on a double basis : lexicology, or the
study of words, and grammar, or the study of their mutations
and combinations. A little reflection, however, will convince
us that this is far from being a true and logical conception of
the problem. It will be found that the two subjects are bound
THE NATURE OF LANGUAGE 33
up with each other and interdependent, and that they can only
be differentiated by doing violence to each. The words them-
sdves and their attendant phenomena cannot be separated
except by invoking the arbitrary.
And after all, what is a word ? ^Tiat possible definition can
we frame which will be adequate to describe what we under-
stand by this term ? In what cases must we assert that two
given words are independent entities, and under what con-
ditions are we entitled to consider as one word ariy two or more
units intimately connected either in form, function, or meaning ?
This is a fundamental question of identity and must be
understood clearly before we can proceed to any form of
classification.
Is the word go identical with the word goes ? The answer
is either affirmative or negative. Let it be affirmative. Let
us say that goes is merely the inflected form of go, just as trees
is the inflected form of tree.
Then if inflected forms are identical w^ith the root word or
etymon, go and went are one word. No ; went is the inflected
form of wend, now obsolete. But went is not obsolete, there-
fore one and the same word may be alive and dead at the same
moment ! But went is used as the preterite of go and for all
purposes except etymological ones may be considered as the
preterite of go.
If we concede this identity we are thrusting the thin edge of
the wedge dangerously far.
There is a tendency to avoid the plural noim corpses and to
substitute for it the term dead bodies ; this term might con-
ceivably become the effective plural of corpse. Shall we then
be justified in saying that dead bodies is the inflected form of,
and therefore identical with, corpse ?
The word ought is, or was, the preterite of the verb owe. Are
we to adopt the principle of " once a preterite always a pre-
terite " ? Let us concede the point and claim identity for owe
and ought. But owe having lost its preterite formed a new one,
and the preterite owed exists and is presumably identical with
its etymon owe.
Puzzle : Find the relation between ought and owed, and
34 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
consider the absurdity of the situation when some time in the
distant future ought has succeeded in forming a new infinitive
of its own (He didn't ought to !).
Having got into an inextricable muddle, let us modify our
first answer and declare that the inflected form of a given word
has a separate existence, that go and goes are separate words.
We can justify our new answer on perfectly rational groimds.
From the foreign student's point of view buy and bought, hold
and held, tell and told are almost as much separate words as
bell and bold in that he may have learnt one and still be in
ignorance of the other.
We are moreover justified when we consider that, after all,
hardly is the inflected form of hard and they are obviously two
different words, and that sing, singer, and song are obviously
etjTTiological cognates and equally obviously possess separate
identities. Were this not so drinker and drunkard would be
the same word !
But if this theory is true, it means that every French verb is
a group of forty-seven words, that each Latin adjective is a
group of thirty-six. And we shrink from the contemplation of
such multiplicative statistics !
A middle course would appear to suggest that regular in-
flected forms must be considered as identical with their primi-
tives, but irregular inflected forms as separate words. Hence
go and goes are identical, as are also tree and trees, long and
longer, but give and gave, child and children, good and better
are separate words.
Even if it were possible to draw a sharp line of demarca-
tion between regular and irregular inflexions, our compromise
would be like all other compromises, unsatisfactory to all
interests ; but few of us would be bold enough to attempt the
tracing of such a line. Moreover, which is to be the test of
irregularity, the orthographic or the phonetic aspect of the word ?
for an inflexion may be regular in one but not in the other.
This is, however, not all. We have yet to consider the
problems of semantic cognates — ^that is to say, significative-
varieties of one and the same word.
Bear (animal) and bear (support) are two distinct words with
THE NATURE OF LANGUAGE 85
an entirely separate history ; so also are can (be able) and can
(metal box), box (case) and box (to fight with fists), see (per-
ceive) and see (bishopric).
It does not need etymology to tell us that ; our semantic
instincts suffice to apprise us of such facts.
But like (similar to) and like (be fond of) are not chance
resemblances, but true cognates ; etymology tells us that these
are not two different words, but two semantically differentiated
varieties of one and the same word.
Have, in / have it done, is the same individual as have in I
have done it. Can we then say that in Je le donne a mon ami
and Je le prends a mon ami the preposition d remains the same
individual although of directly opposite semantic value in the
respective cases ?
Two words then may be identical or entirely different
individuals when considered respectively from the standpoint
of etymology or of semantics. To the language-learner the
significative distinction is everjrthing and the historical identity
nothing.
What does it matter to the English student that devoir (to
have to), devoir (to owe) and devoir (duty) are historically
identical ? What does it matter to the foreign student that
like (be fond of) and like (similar to) are cognates ? The
student of language (as opposed to the student of linguistic
history) is concerned with the present-day semantic values,
identities, and differences.
The only sane method of learning the English verb get
would appear to be to separate it into its nine or ten semantic
varieties and to teach each as a separate word.
Verbs such as mind (I don't mind minding the children, but
they'll have to mind what I tell them, mind !) or wear (a cloth
that will wear well = a cloth that will not wear. This hat is
very much worn !) must be taught as if there were no historical
identity between their significative varieties.
All these factors and considerations make our problem very
complex, and well may we hesitate when asked to specify the
number of words it is necessary to learn in order to make
oneself understood in the foreign language.
86 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
In Chinese there is one hard and fast rule : every syllable
is a unit and to each syllable is assigned a definite ideogram
which serves to identify it.
Viewed in the light of European perspective, most of
these units appear to have no semantic value until juxtaposed
with others.
In many agglutinative languages, sentences and strings of
significative syllables and ' words ' are loosely grouped bunches
of syllables as susceptible of cleavage and of combination as
the figures in an arithmetical statement or the bits of glass in
a kaleidoscope.
To sum up, we find ourselves in the presence of three separate
factors, each of which precludes us from assigning any precise
connotation to the term word and from determining even
arbitrarily a convenient unit of speech without involving
ourselves in a maze of contradictions, inconsistencies, and'
absurdities.
The first of these factors, which we may term the factor of
graphic continuity, is manifested by our inability to demarcate
on rational groimds affixes (as -ness, -able, -less, -Jul, -ly),
simple indecomposable vocables (as dog, take, good), compounds
(as sunlight, understand, lovely), and intimate word-groups (as
of course, at last, leave off, last week).
The second factor is that of Inflexional Identity. We
cannot decide whether tree and trees constitute one word or
two, nor whether go — went — gone is (or are) an entity or a
trinity.
The third factor, which may aptly be termed the Differentia-
tion of Semantic Cognates, tends to prove that one and the same
vocable constitutes as many separate words as there are
meanings contained in it, that like (similar to) and like (be fond
of) are separate words, and that there is no more reason for
unifying keep (retain) and keep (persist) than the two vocables.
retain and persist.
The object of the foregoing remarks is neither explanatory
nor creative, but purely destructive. It may serve to bring
about a certain desirable confusion of mind without which
the necessity of a new terminology, or even of a new science, is
THE NATUBE OF LANGUAGE 87
not always apparent. It is only when we are convinced of the
inadequacy of our present instruments that we aspire toward
more perfect ones.
Section 8.— What is called a word generally proves to be but an
accident of graphic continuity.
The factor which confuses the issue at the outset is that of
Graphic Continuity. In theory this factor has little or no
importance ; it is a side issue, a mere orthographic accident,
but as all our linguistic habits happen to be based on this
convention it will require some little effort on our part to view
it in its true light and proportion, to assign to it no more than
the importance it deserves. ;
Is the entity or oneness of a word to be determined by the
fact that it is or is not written without a break ? If so, then
matchbox is one word and gas fire is not ; then cannot is one
word and may not is two ; then French quoique is one word and
bien que is two ; then German gehen aus is two words and the
infinitive ausgehen is one, as is also auszugehen.
In almost every written language (except perhaps Chinese)
we find abimdant proof that there is no consistent rule as to
what shall and what shall not constitute a word. We know
that all syllables were once independent words, that lovely
used to be love like, that understand is a compound of which the
units are under and stand. We know also that many, if not
most monosyllabic English words were once compounds, that-
affixes have dropped off that were themselves words long
before ; we know that the Early English, Latin, and Greek
forms of many of our dead syllables were living words, and that
they in their turn were the clipped remnants of prehistoric
words the form and meaning of which can be guessed but not
guaranteed.
We know that the word of one century may have been a
loose compound of the century before, and that before that it
was two or more words, that in some future century it may
become compounded anew and at a more distant future period
may become a dead syllable and finally disappear.
We find that two or more words frequently juxtaposed have ,
88 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
a tendency to become joined graphically, and imagination,
stimulated by our visual sense, considers them as one word.
There is often a hyphened transition. Before motor car came
to be written motorcar it appeared as motor-car. When we
reflect upon the number of hyphened words in English we may
form an idea of the number of compounds that will go down
to our descendants.
A board upon which cups were placed was called a cup board,
this passed through the hyphenated stage into cupboard;
phonetic and semantic changes set in, and to-day the foreigner
learns it phonetically as [kAbad] and semantically as " a piece
of furniture or a recess with shelves and door suitable for
containing or storing whatever can be put into it."
All this is fairly comprehensible and clear, and one might
assume an orthographic law which enacts that " when a pair
of juxtaposed words have another pronunciation than when
not so juxtaposed, they shall be written not as two words but
as one." Or we might assume alternatively or simultaneously
that " when a pair of juxtaposed words acquire by such juxta-
position a special meaning not to be found in either word used
separately, such words shall be written as one."
But no such laws would appear to exist. It is true that
many isolated examples may be found which seem to justify
our supposition (cupboard, waistcoat, forehead, gentleman, Sunday,
halfpenny, cardboard, sixpence, altogether, understand, workbox,
etc., etc.), but still more numerous examples will show us that
if such laws exist the executive is apparently very lax in enforc-
ing them. Witness long way, leave off, blow up, pick up, hardly
ever, scarcely any, of course, etc., etc., all of which ought to
be compounded as words. Witness also the unjustified
compounding of bedroom, gaslight, sunlight, teacup, teaspoon,
etc., etc.
Can this inconsistency be explained ? Why matchbox but
not letterbox ? Why teaspoon but not soupspoon ? Why tea-
pot but not coffeepot ? Why gaslight but not gasfire ? Why
cannot but nof^^ustnot ? Why highways but not highseas ?
Is there any reason why yesterday should be one word, last
week two words, and to-day or to-morrow doubtful compounds?
THE NATURE OF LANGUAGE S9
Why, in French, should quoique have the right of wordship
but not Men que; aujourd'hui (d+le+jour+de-irhui) is a five-
barrelled word, puisque is one word, parce que is two !
The Germans make one word of zweihundertfunfundziwanzig ''
and may therefore claim that their vocabulary is as unlimited
as mathematical conception.
The English word hopeless is represented in French by sans
espoir ; typewriter by machine d icrire ; cherry tree by cerisier.
In English we write as three words to go out, in German we find
auszugehen ; High Street corresponds to Hochstrasse ; on my
account is represented by meinerhalb. The Spaniard considers
and writes as one word cojalo where in English we insist on
two words : take it.
Although these facts are, or should be, fully recognized by
everybody, so patent and numerous are their manifestations,
we often find students marvelling that good evening should
figure in French as bonsoir and generally adopting an attitude
either of passive resistance or of aggressive criticism when
confronted with such phenomena.
Section 9.— Let us rather speak of Lexicological Units, and note that
they may be Monologs, Polylogs, Miologs, or Alogisms.
The only way to avoid misunderstanding and self-contra-
diction is to make up our minds to replace the elusive term word
by the three fixed terms monolog, polylog, and miolog whenever
we wish to differentiate. If we observe this principle it will
matter little what are the mutual relations and affinities between
the three. We may leave it to hairsplitters (or hair-splitters',
or hair splitters) to wrangle and to argue roimd and round the
question of when a word is and is not a word.
It is sufficient for us that all miologs were once monologs and
that monologs were once polylogs, that the polylog of to-day
may become the monolog of to-morrow and the miolog of the
day after and finish by disappearing altogether leaving nothing
behind it but an alogism.
Monologs are words considered merely as conventional
orthographic units of vocabulary in virtue of their being —
40 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
(a) Written all in one piece without any interrupting break
or space ;
(6) Separated by a break or space from the words with
which they may happen to be juxtaposed.
Examples : dog, mankind, good, beautiful, go, understand,
of, slow, slowly, up, upstairs, instead, daresay, cannot.
Polylogs are units composed of two or more monologs in juxta-
position but fimctionally and semantically equal to a monolog.
Examples : garden city, in case, of course, in spite of,
leave off, on Sunday, during the winter, every year,
for a long time, in view of the fact that, as a matter
of fact, hardly ever.
Polylogs are often called phrases, group-words, or word-groups.
The distinction between polylogs and monologs is purely
arbitrary. A polylog may have a monolog as a translation
■ (bilingual equivalence) or as a synonym (unilingual equivalence).
Thus the polylog leave off equals in signification the English and
French monologs cease and cesser.
Miologs are significative or functional units such as affixes
and the more concrete inflexions. They are generally . con-
sidered /but for no consistent reason) to be less than words,
or as fractions of words.
Examples : -ly, -ment, -less, -ful, -ed, -ing, -graph,
-gram, -phone, -log (or -logue), -ism, -logy, -graphy,
-ist, -er, -est. Mono-, hi-, multi-, poly-, uni-, con-,
ortho-, in-, ex-, de-, re-, a-, 's, o'.
The miolog is to the monolog what the monolog is to the
polylog, or conversely the monolog is to the miolog what the
polylog is to the monolog. There is the same problem as to
what should and what should not be written monologically or
miologically.
We may say that the French monological parlera equals the
EngUsh polylogical will speak, or conversely that the English
monological will equals the French miological -era. Or we
may say that did want is the polylogical form of the monological
wanted, or conversely that the miological -ed equals the mono-
logical did.
THE NATURE OF LANGUAGE 41
All of which considerations lead us to the conclusion that
the accidental and transitory conditions of monologicism,
polylogicism, and miologicism have no logical importance
whatever in practical linguistics. The three forms of graphic
continuity are interchangeable and interconvertible ; m»nel«s
may be translated by polylog and by miolog.
The non-recognition of this principle constitutes what we
may term the linguistic fallacy of the monolog, which consists in
assuming that monologs alone have the right to be considered
as words, that they alone have the privilege of a place in the
dictionary, that they alone possess the quality of translatability
and even of identity.
A most typical example of this fallacy is to declare that the
word longer does not exist in French, that we have to say more
long. All that this amounts to is that a certain idea is expressed
in English monologically and in French polylogically, or con-
versely that French monologic plus becomes in certain cases
English miologic -er.
Alogisms is the term we may use in order to designate those
cases in which a given concept is expressed without the use of
any concrete lexicological imit. Alogisms fall into three chief
categories : (1) Position ; (2) Stress and intonation ; (8) Sous-
entendus.
Instead of saying tree which bears fruit we may say fruit tree,
placing stress accompanied by a certain intonation on the word
fruit; in the former case we express the idea which bears hy
two monologs, in the latter case the idea is expressed alogistically.
In some languages, including English, this particular alogistic
form of expression is common; in other languages it is not
available. In English we say coffee-cup, letter-boa;, post-office;
in French we must say tasse d cafi, boite aux lettres, bureau de
paste ; the Enghsh alogisms are replaced by monologs.
I am going to my friend's contains an alogistic concept
equivalent to the monolog hou^e (curiously enough, in the
French equivalent expression, Je vais chez mon ami, the con-
cept corresponding to the monolog to is alogistic). I gave the
money to the man may be expressed with an alogism as I gave
the man the money. In English and other languages the
42 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
interrogative idea is generally expressed, not by means of an
appropriate monolog (such as the Polish (A or the Japanese ha),
nor by means of a polylog (such as the French est-ce que), but
alogicaUy by inversion.
Dubitative questions are expressed in English by means
of a rising intonation on the last syllable or syllables of the
sentence :
Did you go ? Shall you see him ?
The rising intonation is equivalent to the polylog or not and
effectively replaces it. Interesting examples of this type of
alogism are given and explained in an article in Miscellanea
Phonetica (1914) by Mr H. O. Coleman, entitled "Intonation
and Emphasis." A perusal of this article will show to
what extent concrete lexicological units may be replaced by
alogisms.
The lexicological units, then, may be considered in point of
graphic continuity as monologs, polylogs, and miologs, and may
also be manifested as disincamate alogisms ; of these four
elements the matter of the written language is made up.
Section 10.— Let ns classify these units according to the respective
principles of Morphology (with its subdivisions). Semantics, and
Ergonics.
The essential principle of classification consists of forming
groups of individual units all possessing some common attri-
butes. By using these groups we are enabled to teach and to
learn facts on a wholesale scale ; without such groups our
acquisition of knowledge must necessarily proceed on ' retail '
lines and such knowledge is of the 'ununified' order. It is
only when we realize the nature of the agreements and differences
shown by the scheme of classification that we may be said to
understand the subject of our study. One of the first duties
to be performed in our efforts to lay the foimdations of the
THE NATURE OF LANGUAGE 48
scientific study of language is therefore to proceed to a scientific
classification of the units of which language is composed.
The lexicological units of a language, like all other entities
conceivable by the human mind, may be classified in many
different ways ; each scheme of division constitutes what is
known as a basis of classification.
The chief of these fall under the headings of Form, of Meaning,
and of Function.
Morphology or Form (including Phonetics, Phonology,
Orthography, and Etymology)
From the point of view of phonetics the unit of language is
the sound. The phonetician is concerned chiefly with the
classification of sounds acco;rding to the manner in which each
is articulated.
From the point of view of phonology the unit of language is
the phoneme. Each language possesses a set of phonemes ;
most of these generally coincide with the phonetic unit {i.e. the
sound) ; others are or may be intimate sound-combinations, such
as English [ei] (as in the word day) or German [ts] (as in the
word zehn).
One of the differences between the phoneme and the sound
lies in the fact that the sound is absolute, a thing-in-itself, a
fixed quantity of a physiological and acoustic nature, whereas
the phoneme is relative, not a fixed entity, but the result of a
long historical development varying and variable in its nature.
Thus the vowel element in the English unit bone may be con-
sidered phonetically as consisting (in the South of England) of
the vowel-sounds [o] and [u], each of which is produced in a
particular way by a particular position of the organs of speech.
This same element considered phonologically is a phoneme
of which one of the ancestral forms (Early English) was probably
pronounced [a:], and of which the present-day prommciation
varies between two extremes [su] and [o:].
From the point of view of orthography the ultimate unit of
language is the letter ; one or more of these may form a syllable,
and one or more syllables may form that which is the general
conception of a word.
44 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
From the point of view of etymology, the unit of language
is the etymon. We may perhaps venture to define an etymon
as " any group of significative speech-imits Cognate with each
other and with their common ancestral form or forms." Thus
Enghsh dish and German Tisch are etymologically cognate
with each other and with a common ancestral (Latin) form
discus. Similarly English dry is etymologically cognate with
drier, driest, dries, dried, drying, dryness, dryish, and also with
foreign and ancestral cognates, the whole group and succession
constituting one etymon.
Most phenomena of inflexion in general (including conjuga-
tion proper and declension proper), and of derivation, come into
the province of etymology, using the term in its more ancient
and broader sense.
Semantics or Meaning
From the point of view of semantics the unit of language is
what we may term the semanticon, or unit of signification.
These units of meaning (or of thought) sometimes coincide with
monologs, but may often be equally well expressed by means
of polylogs or miologs ; the monolog again, the polylog a second^
time and the miolog re- all serve to express the same idea.
Any group of linguistic units expressing the same or nearly
the same idea may be called a semantic group, each member of
which will be a synonym of the others. The three words hardly,
scarcely, and barely are identical in meaning ; they form a
semantic group and are synonyms. It does not need an
etymologist to tell us that the three words are of entirely
different origin and history ; they are distinct etymons. Except
for the suffix -ly they differ from each other both phonetically
and orthographieally ; their sole affinity lies in the fact that
they all express precisely the same meaning. ,
A synonym however need not express precisely the same
meaning as one of its fellow- members of the same group. In
some cases we do indeed find pairs or groups of units so closely
related in meaning that any one member may be used for
another in any conceivable context. From these, however,
we may pass almost imperceptibly to other pairs and groups
THE NATURE OF LANGUAGE 45
less similar in meaning, until we finally reach examples in which
only by a considerable stretch of imagination can the members
be called synonyms.
A definition is nothing other than a polylogical synonym
of what is generally a shorter unit (a monolog, for instance).
The admission into a semantic group of members from two or
more different languages constitutes the basis of all translation,
for a translation is simply a foreign synonym of a native unit
or vice versa.
Ergonics or Function
Considered from the point of view of grammatical function
or analysis, the unit of language can only be what we shall
term the ergon {i.e. the unit of work). The ergon, like the
semanticon, may be a monolog, a polylog, a miolog, or even an
alpgism.
Ergons may be classified according to their degree of com-
pleteness, ranging from those complete \mits called sentences
down to ultimate units which we may term insecables.
Sentences are complete units of thought ; they are decom-
posable into component parts (each of which may be still
further decomposed) and may (as clauses) constitute parts of
other sentences.
Insecables constitute fractions of greater ergons, but cannot
themselves be decomposed into lesser ergons. Between these
two extremes there are ergons of an indefinite number of
degrees of integrity.
Were the number of sentences in a given language limited
to a few hundreds, or even a few thousands, a student might
reasonably be expected to learn them off by heart, and by so
doing to become master of the language. The number of
sentences, however, being infinite, recourse must be had to the
study of their mechanism in order that from the relatively
limited number of lesser ergons an infinite number of sentences
may be composed at will.
It must not be thought, however, that the key to language-
study is to be found by taking the insecable as a starting-
point. Were the insecables of a given language of the same
46 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
character as the ultimate units of mathematics, the building-up
of sentences would be a mathematical operation. This, how-
ever, is not the case; insecables, like all other ergons, are
purely arbitrary, they are not scientific units but conventional
units, the insecable of one language may equal ergonically the
compound of another.
Ergons may also be classified according to the precise function
they perform in the sentence. Auxiliaries, finites, infinites,
prepositions, modifiers, adjimcts in all their varieties, and the
modifiers and adjuncts of these, all have their functional values
and definite relations one toward another.
Strange to say, the science the object of which is to determine
the relations between such groups, and to specify the manner
in which greater may be built up from lesser ergons, is so far
without a name. The terms generally used to designate this
branch of linguistic science are syntax, syntactic analysis^
logical analysis, sentence analysis, or metaphysical analysis.
None of these terms, however, appears to meet the case.
Analysis denotes but half the scope of this science, which is both
analytic and synthetic. Syntax is more suitable, but imfortun-
ately this term (as generally accepted) only considers classes of
ergons such as subject, predicate, and complements, leaving to.
etymology the examination of their respective components.
To cover all the phenomena and operations connected with ,
analysis and synthesis, from the sentence down to the insecable,
and vice versa, we suggest and shall henceforth use the com-
prehensive term Ergonics. '
Let us, then, sum up our conclusions by stating that languagejf
is made up of units considered variously as — ;j
I
Sounds (the units of phonetics) '
Phonemes (the units of phonology)
Letters (the rniits of orthography)
Etymons (the units of etymology)
Semantjcons (the units of semantics)
Ergons (the units of ergonics)
PART III
PRELIMINARY FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC
PEDAGOGY
Section 11.— A complete and ideal language method has a fourfold
object, and this is to enable the student, in the shortest
possible time and with the least effort, so to assimilate the
materials of which the foreign language is composed that he is
thereby enabled to understand what he hears and reads, and
also to express himself correctly both by the oral and written
mediums.
If somebody asked us point-blank, " What shall I do to be-
come rich ? " we should consider it a strange question and be
tempted to give a flippant reply. If our questioner persisted
in all seriousness in his inquiry, we should be obliged to reply
in vague terms by advising him to adapt the right means to the
desired end.
Were he then to inquire what are the right means, we should
have to ask him to specify quite a number of points. We
should want to know something about the seeker after riches,
who and what he was, his age, what capital he already possessed,
what was his trade or calling, to what extent nature and art had
endowed his brain with money-making faculties, whether he
had so far been a successful financier or a successful bankrupt.
When in possession of this information, we should have to ask
the most pertinent question : " What do you understand by
the term rich ? For what is riches to one is poverty to another.
Are you thinking of £500, £5000, or £50,000 a year ? "
Only when we had received a full reply to our questions
could we attempt to answer his, and even then we should
find ourselves reduced to generalities and negative advice in the
shape of a few dozen don'ts.
We find ourselves in a similar position when confronted with
the question : " What is the best method of learning a foreign
47
48 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
language ? ' ' We can only answer by the general formula quoted
above as a heading to this section.
When pressed for details as to how this counsel of perfection
is to be put into actual practice, we in our turn must submit
our interrogator to a series of questions. Until we receive,
complete answers to these, it is impossible for us to suggest
/ any precise lines on which to apply the general formula.
It is manifestly absurd to attempt to scAve a problem the
factors of which are unknown. These initial factors may be ,
grouped under two headings, subjective and objective. The
subjective factors concern the student himself ; they constitute
the personal equation. The objective factors relate to the end i
in view, the object to be attained ; they constitute the linguistic
aspect of the problem.
Section 12.— In order to determine the best programme for a given
student we must take into consideration four subjective factors :
(a) The student ; (b) his previous study of the language ;
(c) his preliminary equipment ; (d) his incentive.
(a) The Student
Our first three questions deal with the personality of the
student, his age, temperament, and nationality.
Obviously the whole question of study is profoundly affected
by the age of the student. The treatment which would suit a
- child ten years old will be most unsuitable for an adult student,
and vice versa. The reasoning faculties of the adult will help
him to overcome with ease many problems of an intellectual
nature, and at the same time, according to the dictum that
a little learning is a dangerous thing, will create for him all
sorts of artificial difficulties and false analogies.
The adult will perceive dangerous analogies which will lead
him astray. The child, whose reasoning faculties are com-
paratively undeveloped, will not fall into these traps. Two
French pupils, one aged ten and the other twenty, make the
acquaintance of the English verb let in the sentence let me
come. The adult will associate let with his native laissep, and
ere long will create artificial and un-English sentences such as
FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 49
I taish to let my parcel here. The child with his restricted
capacities of analogy has not associated let and laisser, and
consequently will not misuse the verb in question.
As a matter of fact, the young child may be perfectly bilingual
and yet imable to establish any bilingual equations. When
the writer's daughter was six years old she could speak English
and French with almost equal facility, but was never able to
give, the English equivalents of the simplest French words, or
vice versa. If asked to point to the window, she would point to
it ; or if asked, " Montre-moi la fenetre " she would do so. But
when asked,' '^ How do you say window when you are speaking
in French ? " there would 'be no other answer than a bewildered
look. Then " Coiptnent dis-tu fenitre quand tu paries en
anglais ? " The same puzzled expression was the only answer.
The child had formed no associations whatever between pairs
of words which we are accustomed to consider as almost perfect
translations. Things which were equal to the same thing were
not yet equal to one another.
Thanks to the non-development of what we shall call bilingual
consciousness there is little danger of the child's importing into
one language the 9haracteristics of another.
An adult Englishman hears the French word peu. He
associates it immediately with the English sound in purr, and
imtil corrected by an energetic application of practical phonetics
will persist in pronouncing the two words identically. There
is no danger that a yormg child will do this. In short, the ^
younger the student the less will be his proneness to the six
' vicious tendencies ' (each of which is described in Section 34).
The teacher must utilize and take full advantage of the
precious factor of ignorance or the undeveloped powers of
analogy, false or otherwise.
It is true that in the vast majority of cases the student will
already have arrived at the age of reason and of false analogy. >
The factor of natural ignorance not being there to help us, it will^
be necessary to introduce tactics the object of which will be to
induce an artificial ignorance so that the adult may not be un-
duly handicapped by his faculties of reasoning. With this we
shall deal when we come to consider the functions of the teacher.
50 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
The temperament of the student is a factor which must be
taken into consid'eration. The tactics that will suit the
plodding, patient, and unimaginative will not be efficacious
when applied to the nervous, energetic, and imaginative type.
Those who work by fits and starts with strenuous activity
are capable of efforts unknown to the dull but patient plodder.
An impatient genius will tire of a programme worked out for
the use of a steady worker i the tricks and devices invented to
circumvent the vagaries of the bad learner will be a source of
useless irritation to the student who has no need of them. The
expert assimilator, clamouring for new words to conquer, is in
a different position from the sluggish learner, to whom a dozen
new words will give a severe attack of linguistic indigestion.
In class-work, of course, this factor and many others besides
will have to be partially or totally neglected. No two members
of a class possess the same temperament, but the exigencies of
such teaching will necessitate a general treatment calculated
to suit the average case.
The nationality of the student is sometimes of importance.
Certain races seem to possess the faculties of language-study in
a greater degree than others. The Latin races, it would appear, .
are generally less adaptable than the Germanic . Scandinavians,'
Flemings, Hungarians, and others whose mother-tongues are
not in universal currency would seem to be better favoured
with the innate gift of linguistic study. These, however, are
problems of comparatively little importance in our present
quest,
(b) The Pbevious Study of the Pupil
There is a world of difference between the raw beginner and
the pupil who already has a nodding acquaintance with the
language. The former may to a certain extent be compared
with the child ; his perceptive faculties have a fair start, he is
less likely to fall into the traps of defective analogy. Ask an'
Englishman to pronounce the French word bon. If he has no
knowledge whatever of the language it is more than likely,
that his reproduction will be tolerably exact. If, on the other
hand, he is already familiar with the word (more especially in
FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 51
its orthographic form), his performance will probably be im-
satisfactory. It is very interesting to note what takes place
when a cjass of beginners includes a member who has already
acquired a few superficial notions of the language. Unspoiled
by defective cross-association, the beginners will tend to attach
the right pronunciation to the words they learn and to give
them their true semantic value, whereas the more ' advanced '
member will rely on his old associations and amuse his fellow-
students by his blunders.
If such previous study has been extensive, our student will
fall either into the category of the advanced worker (in which
case he must be transferred to an advanced class), or into that
. of the spoiled learner (in which case he must be transferred to a
special class and be given special corrective treatment).
Which of the two alternatives will best suit his case must be
determined by a series of tests — in other terms, an examination.
If his former teacher worked according to sound principles, his
efforts seconded by a rationally composed book, it will be possible
to place the student in the first category. But if his former
training has been defective such a course will probably not be
expedient. He may have studied under a teacher who himself
had an inadequate knowledge of the language, in which case he
will have inherited his teacher's defects. His book may have
been one of those monstrosities which pass off a caricature of
the language as the real article. In this case he will have the
exceedingly difficult task of unlearning everything and effacing
from his mind all the false associations that he has acquired.
His degree of knowledge must be expressed by a minus instead
of by a plus, and to be strictly logical we should give him a
course of memory-obliteration (if such a process were possible)
until he has attained the state of ignorance already enjoyed by
his fellow-students.
(c) The Preliminary Equipment of the Student
Calligraphy. — If our student is illiterate he will be unduly
handicapped in his efforts to learn the language. If he has
never learnt to use a pen or a pencil it will be impossible for
52 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
him to take notes or to write exercises ; if he has never learnt
to read he will be unable to make use of a book. Although
conceivable, it is hardly possible that we shall ever be con-
fronted in this country by students lacking this essential pre-
liminary. In remote lands, however, this may be the rule
rather than the exception. The missionary giving a course of
English to adult Polynesians must come face to face with this
factor. A somewhat similar situation is necessarily present
when the student has no notion of the script forms of the
language he is setting out to learn. The study of literary
Chinese may necessitate a preliminary course in which we learn
to hold and to use the native writing-brush and to rub our
' Indian ink.' The converse is certainly the case. The
European may be permitted to trace his Chinese characters
with a European pen, but the Chinaman will not find it con-
venient to write English and French with a native brush !
The English boy or girl of ten years of age may be so badly
endowed with the art of using a pen, that the writing of legible
matter is an impossibility. Nor are adults always perfect
penmen. It is difficult to correct the exercises of a student
whose writing is so bad that he himself is unable to decipher it !
The art of using a pen or a Chinese brush forms no part of
language-study proper, but is certainly an essential preliminary
to it.
This is such a patent fact that it would hardly seem necessary
to call attention to it ; indeed. We only do so in order to specify
clearly what we are to understand by an essentially preliminary
study.
t Oral Imitation. — ^This is another essential preliminary to the
study proper of language. For general purposes it is more
important to possess the faculty of imitating speech than to
be an expert penman, for while we recognize the arbitrary or
artificial nature of writing, the imitation of a speaker is a
natural gift which although possessed by every one in his
infancy has become wholly or partially atrophied in the case
of adults. The very young child learns a most extensive
vocabulary in the form of useful sentences purely by the method
of imitation. Listen to the babblings of a child of eighteen
FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 58
months ; note how he listens and with what fidelity he repro-
duces, in spite of his rudimentary articulation, all he hears;
vowels, stress, and intonation, all are reproduced with accuracy ;
consonants and diphthongs are yet a little above his articulatory
powers, but these will come a little later. To the English child
of eighteen months it matters little whether the sentence to be
reproduced is a native or foreign one. Uninfluenced by any
written forms, with no cross-associations to confuse the issue,
the child goes on day by day imitating the speech of his elders,
until he becomes a speaking machine of which the parts have
each learnt their respective functions.
When his innate powers of oral imitation have played their
part, as soon as he becomes a fully articulate creature with a
vocabulary sufficient for everyday use, these powers of repro-
duction by ear seem to weaken, and at an age varying between
five and ten they have become dormant. If at the age of ten
the chOd begins to learn a second language it is no longer with
the precious aid of his imitative faculties. What he does is to
liken the foreign soimds to his own, to hear his English ay
(in fay) where he should hear the French &, to reproduce French
eau (i;i Veau) in the guise of his English ow (in low).
This is not true for all cases. A minority, a very small
minority, of children retain this power of imitation ; others who
have lost it may regain it with some facility ; hence among
language students we find a certain nimiber who are able to
imitate foreign speech, just as they imitated in their infancy
those who spoke what has become their native language.
In addition to the two extreme types, those who can imitate
anything and those who can imitate nothing, there would
appear to be a rather curious intermediate type. The writer
has known many cases in which Belgians with a marked Walloon
pronunciation go to Paris and after a stay varying between
a few months and a few years return to their own coimtry
perfectly able to speak Parisian. But although these people
were able merely by exercising their latent faculties of imita-
tion to acquire the pronimciation of a cognate dialect, they were
unable to utilize them in order to acquire a passable pronuncia-
tion of English. The writer would note here the curious case
54 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
of an Englishman who was able to produce perfect imitations
of any English dialect and could reproduce to the exact tone
the various street cries of the French town in which he lived,
but who, during the course of his French lessons, was unable
to produce any but the most Britannic sounds.
It is more than probable that the inability to use these latent
powers of imitation is due more to shyness and to unconscious
restraint than to any physical obstacle. If it were possible to
react against this sense of restraint, if it were possible to
-produce a state of natural abandon with a supreme disregard of
self-ridicule, each of us might become an imitator with the
same success as in our infancy.
If the student with whom we are dealing is one who can
imitate, the ihnscles of whose vocal organs are ' tuned ' to his
auditive perceptions, then he will already have overcome the
greatest obstacle to the acquisition of a foreign language. An
ideal imitator is an ideal language-learner, for correct auditive
perception and correct oral production are the natural bases
of all true language-study.
Those who have lost their early faculties of oral reproduction
must be prepared to reacquire them, else will their progress be
as that of the snail, or at best as that of a crab or a waltzing
mouse.
The faculty of correct reproduction is not only of phonetic
importance, but it has a most direct bearing upon the whole
process of study, \vhich, as we shall see later, reposes on a
groundwork of perfectly memorized sentences. Without these
there is no real progress whatever, and without the faculty of
correct reproduction, memorizing is a slow and almost impossible
process.
A Knowledge of the Theory of Language. — A valuable asset
in studying the structure of a foreign language is a rough but
working knowledge of the nattire of language itself. Its value,
it is true, is more of a negative than of a positive nature, for if
this knowledge does not go very far in the direction of further-
ing the student's progress, it will at least show him many of the
pitfalls which beset his way and will expose most of the linguistic
fallacies. The more the student is the victim of the six ' vicious
FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 55
tendencies ' the more necessary it is for him to possess the know-
ledge which proves them to be vicious. Those who imagine
' words to be homogeneous imits, each with a fixed semantic
value determined by its etymology; those who consider the
phonetic aspect as a mere offshoot of the written ; those who
mistake literature for lapguage, whose knowledge of semantics
and eigonics is confined to a pocket dictionary and classical
grammar, such students are in sore need of a course of language
theory, including precise (even if concise) notions as to the
nature of words, sounds, functions, and meanings.
A Knowledge of the Theory of Study is closely allied to the
point treated above and is complementary to it. In the same
way that a knowledge of linguistics disposes of the fallacies of
language, so may a knowledge of the processes of study dispel
the illusions connected with the pedagogic side of the problem.
Those who learn isolated lists of words will cease wasting their
time in so doing when they realize the futility of such proceed-
ings ; those who learn granunatical rules by heart and imagine
this to be the royal road to success will stop this practice when
they clearly see this road to he a culde sac. Few adult pupils
will give themselves the trouble of memorizing sentences until
they are convinced that this is the most direct road to the end
they wish to attain, and of this they will certainly not be con-
vinced unless they devote a few hours to the understanding
of such' pedagogic principles as do exist in the linguistic world.
A Knowledge of the Theory of Memory. — ^The last of the five
subjects suggested as useful or even indispensable preliminaries
is that connected with the laws of memory. Many students
realize intuitively and with a perfect consciousness what it is
necessary to do in order to remember the isolated facts the
aggregate of which make up the sum of the required knowledge.
For such persons no special memory course is needful, but for
those who, despite their best efforts, are imable to assimilate
knowledge it is a very useful thing to have a first-hand
acquaintance with those laws which fall under the headings
of localization, visualization, association, separation, analogy,
concentration, catehizing, semanticizing, and assimilation.
Most people confess to a bad memory. Doubtless there do
56 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
exist cases in which the faculty of remembering is neither
apparent nor latent, but in the great majority of persons there
^ are wonderful, if latent, powers of memory. A short and
/ simple course of training in most cases produces results which
/ the uninitiated would be tempted to call miraculous.
The five factors Calligraphy, Oral Imitation, Theory of
Language, Theory of Study, Theory of Memory make up the simi
of what we may call the Preliminaries to Language-study.
As we have already noted, none of these forms an essential part
of the study of any particular language. A text-book of French
for the use of English students will not include any one of
them. Our inquiry, however, will plainly show that if these
preliminaries form no part of language-study, they are very
valuable outside auxiliaries and capable of rendering the greatest
possible help to the student.
That is why, on examining in advance the mental faculties
of our student, we wish particularly to know whether and in
what degree he is conversant with these pertinent factors.
In that section of our inquiry which will treat exclusively of
the Programme of Study we shallconclude that it will be a real
economy of time and of effort for the student to acquire at
least the outline of the leading features of these five subjects.
It may be noted here that such acquisition is in the nature of
a permanent investment, good for a lifetime, and a sound
preparation for any number of languages. It is work which
may be accomplished once for all, and it will prove to be of
constant utility.
(d) Incentive
Before passing to the objective factors it would be well to
know what is the incentive of our student; Is he going to
learn in order to please himself, or for some exterior reason ?'
The incentive is the mainspring of his mechanism of study ;
if he realizes that the successful attaining of the end in viewi
is essential to his well-being, this alone will quicken his mental
faculties and encourage him to supreme efforts.
In a very small number of cases the language itself constitutes
the interest and the end in view ; in the vast majority of cases
FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 57
the study of the language is looked upon as a necessary evil,
only endurable on account of the reward which will attend its
successful termination.
A decides to learn French because a knowledge of that
language will further his interests by making him a more
efficient clerk or salesman.
B comes to the same decision because it will give him greater
comfort in his journeys abroad.
C will leam because the exigencies of competitive examination
compel him to do so.
D has no choice ; he goes to school and he must obey his
teacher.
JS determines to become a French scholar because it will
enable him to read certain scientific works of which no English
translation exists.
¥ is anxious to know French in order that he may enjoy the
masterpieces of French fiction.
G intends to leam French because he is interested in philology
and the structure of language.
So many men, so many motives.
Some of these will prove to be powerful mainsprings ; others
will be such poor incentives that artificial stimulants will have
to be applied continuously by the teacher in order to make the
machine go at all. To maintain that the sum of all these diverse
incentives represents the total number of different treatments
required to fit each individual case would be a manifest exaggera-
tion. Since, however, we have set out to inquire into the nature
of all the factors connected with language-study in order that
the essential may be distinguishe4 from the unessential, we
must recognize, if only in abstract theory, the possibility of a
vast number of courses open to us in accordance with the purely
subjective factors in the problem. We must acknowledge that
the student of even temperament, an expert penman, an artist
in mimicry, an expert in the linguistic, pedagogic, and mnemonic
sciences, mispoiled by previous defective study and possessing
a powerful incentive, is more likely to study a foreign language
with success than one who is his antithesis in every particular.
We may even go so far as to say that such an ideal subject
58 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
requires no teaching at all ; place him in France and within
three months he will speak like a native. We may venture to
predict that his contrary counterpart will do nothing but waste
his time and that of his teacher if he tries to learn a foreign
language, and that his best course would be to relinquish
whatever linguistic ambition he possesses.
On broad lines we may say that some pupils will need very
careful handling and require us to take all possible precau-
tions, whereas others may be left largely to their own devices
without much fear of their contracting bad linguistic habits.
Section 13.— We must also take into consideration five objective
factors : (a) The language to be studied ; (b) the orientation of
the study ; (c) the extent of the study ; {d) the degree of the
study ; (e) the manner of the study.
The following group of five factors concerns the object of
study ; we will therefore speak of them as the objective
factors, as distinct from the four factors just examined, which
concern the student himself and his capacities.
(a) The Language
The problem to be faced by a Frenchman about to learn Italian
has a very different character from that encountered by an
Englishman setting out to learn Hungarian. French and Italian
are cognate or sister languages ; English and Hungarian are not
even distant relatives : the two tongues have nothing at all
in common. The resemblances between two cognate languages
constitute both a facility and a source of danger. French and
Italian are very similar in structure, and by far the greater
part of their vocabularies may be arranged in homo-etymonic
pairs. That is to say, most French words have their etjnnological
equivalent in Italian, which may generally be recognized at
sight. When a Frenchman can take a long passage in Italian
and decipher its meaning by converting each word into its French
morphological equivalent, he may be excused for assuming that
etymological and semantic idejitity are one and the same thing.
To a certain extent also he may be justified in concluding that
it is possible to speak and understand Italian while thinking
FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 59
in French. It will be difficult, perhaps impossible, for him
to resist putting his theory into practice, and by so doing to
become the victim of all the fallacies which militate against
success in language- study ; he will become a ' bad learner.'
An Englishman studying Hungarian wOl have no such
temptation. On the face of it there is no possible etymological-
or morphological identity between Hungarian words and
English ones. The superficial difficulty of the language will
tend to force him to adopt a right line of study, just as the
superficial facility of Italian will tempt the Frenchman into the
wrong path. A paradox-loving Belgian pupil of the writer's
once declared English to be far more difficult of acquisition
than German. Written English, he said, looked so absurdly
easy that it was impossible not to believe that it was a word-
for-word transcription of French ; its apparent facility dis-
couraged serious study. German, on the contrary, was so
different from French in every respect that all efforts at a
similar method of translation were doomed to failure.
This shrewd observation concretizes the essential difference
between a pair of cognate languages and a pair which are
non-cognate. The former constitute a direct temptation to a
vicious system of mechanical conversion ; in the latter case
the absence of morphological resemblance tends to a sounder
system of study.
A pupil will be more docile and require fewer disciplinary
measures when learning a language of a totally strange nature.
(6) Orientation
It is not enough for a student to state that he wishes to learn
a certain language. Unless the teacher knows in what aspect
he wishes to learn it, he and the pupil will soon be at cross-
purposes. Each language may be said to embrace three
groups of dialects. In addition to this, each language may be
viewed from the point of view of its graphic or oral manifesta-
tion. Furthermore, an acquaintance with the language may.
be of a passive or an active nature. These three considerations,
dialect, manifestation, and state, may be grouped under the.
common heading of Orientation.
60 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Dialect. — ^Three sorts of dialects may be distinguished:
regional, temporal, and social.
It must be clearly recognized that no language possesses an
intrinsically standard form. That each language possesses an
ideal ' correct ' form from which all divergencies constitute
' impurities ' or ' mistakes ' is not only a popular superstition,
but also one which is shared by the majority of academicians
and literary experts. Nearly all Frenchmen are imbued with
the doctrine that French is great, there is but one French and
Littr^ is his prophet ! As a matter of fact, French, like all
other languages, is a mass of regional, temporal, and social dia-
lects. Of these, one variety has become classic and artificialized
under the auspices of the French Academy.
There are many English dialects. In point of space we have
Southern English, North Country, Scottish, Irish, American,
and Australian dialects, each of which contains numerous sub-
divisions.
Let it be understood that we use the term ' dialect ' in the
sense of a variety of a given language, the sum of which varieties
constitutes the language itself.
Dialectal varieties include not only divergencies of pro*
nunciation, but also differences in general lexicological
aspects ; we find in one dialect sounds, etymons, semanticons, .
and ergons unknown in the sister dialects. In short, the
dialects of a given language bear the same relation to each
other as do the sister languages of a given cognate group. As
the Walloon dialect of French is to the Provengal dialect of
French, so is Portuguese to Italian. There is but a difference
in degree.
When we speak of the Spanish language we generally mean
that one of the Iberian dialects known as Castilian. By
German we mean that variety of Modem High German which
its literature has caused to become classical. When we speak
of the Chinese, Flemish, or Norwegian languages, we have no
precise notion at all of what we mean.
Although no one dialect of a language is in itself intrinsically
more ' correct ' or ' purer ' than its sister dialects, it is generally
convenient to specify a so-called standard dialect and to
FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 61
ccaisider it as the one most worthy of our attention. This
standard dialect is generally defined as being the one which
is spoken by educated persons in and within a certain radius
of the capital or the centre of intellectual activity.
When the scene is placed in London the majority of the
characters in a play by Shaw, Jones, or Pinero speak educated
Cockney, and the books in which such plays are presented to the
public in printed form are written in educated Cockney. Let
us add that this will be the colloquial variety as distinguished
from the literary variety of a leading article in The Times.
As modem literary English is based on the London or
educated- Cockney dialect, we may consider this to be a
convenient standard type suitable to be the object of study
for a foreigner.
Similarly it is expedient to study Northern or Parisian French ;
the more discriminating will claim that even this dialect should
be differentiated according to its subdivisions. As to those
who claim a special ' purity ' for the French of Tours, Blois,
Lyons, or Liege, let us dismiss their talk as mere literary
babblings having no weight in a serious linguistic inquiry.
No sounder precept can be given to the student than to
assimilate the vocabulary (and all that term implies) of educated
people speaking what is generally considered to be the standard
dialect of the language.
Apart from regional, we are faced with temporal varieties of
a given language. A Frenchman wishes to learn English. We
may give him a niunber of lessons in modern educated Cockney
and then discover that he wanted to follow the shortest path
to Shakespeare ! His requirements were concerned, not with
the twentieth-century, but with the sixteenth- century dialect.
He should have specified his requirements instead of assuming
that in England to-day we speak the language of Shakespeare.
To read the comedies of Moliere or the fables of La Fontaine
with a view to acquiring a knowledge of modem French is an
example of misdirected energy arising from ignorance of the
nature of the language. A case is known of a conscientious
but short-sighted student who set out to learn modem French
via Latin and the Chanson de Roland.
62 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
We may perhaps distinguish varieties of a given language
neither of a purely regional nor of a purely temporal character.
The difference between an article in The English Review and
the speech of a Hyde Park politician is great. While the
former tends toward elegant archaisms, the latter is garnished
by homely allusions and vigorous metaphor of a most un-
classical nature. " The old bloke didn't ought to say nuffink,"
compared with "The elderly gentleman ought not to say
anything," " You ain't got no call to [bad word] off," com-
pared with " There is no need for you to go," represent two
varieties of speech of which the differences, being neither regional
nor temporal, must be designated by a third term ; we might
call them social differences.
The Literary Style. — That style which is used in written
composition and in public speaking.
It may be divided into ' strata ' (to use the term of the late
Henry Sweet), the highest of which is represented by the archaic
language of poetry, the lowest approximating to everyday speech.
The study of the literary style is essential for students of
literature and of written language.
Colloquial Style. — That style which is used in everyday
conversation, in familiar letters, and in the reproduction of
conversations.
The colloquial style may also be subdivided into various
strata, the highest being the speech of educated persons when
speaking to strangers, and the lowest being represented hy the
most vulgar forms of speech.
These social dialects may be classified according to the follow-
ing scale : poetical and (practically identical with archaic)
high literary prose ; normal literary prose (the style of leading
articles) ; high colloquial (as when speaking to strangers) ;
normal colloquial (as when speaking to intimate friends) ;
vulgar colloquial (as used by vulgar persons).
There is, of course, a gradual transition from one stage to
another ; they are not separated by hard and fast lines.
Normal colloquial may become more and more slangy and less
and less attention may be paid to its conformity with literary
usage imtil it becomes vulgar. All five degrees may be both
FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 63
written and spoken : we may recite poetry, and in novels we
may write vxdgar talk.
The social dialects of most interest to the average student
are those we have designated as normal literary prose and
normal colloquial.
It must be perfectly understood by all students that no one
of these styles is ever used by natives to serve both for literary
and colloquial purposes. The French in general (and their
professeurs in particvdar) maintain with sad insistence that good
colloquial French and good literary French are synonymous
terms. If this were true we should be forced to the inevitable
conclusion that every Frenchman (including the members of
their Academy) invariably speaks bad French except when in
the piilpit and on the platform.
Similar superstitions exist in England. It is often stated
that expressions such as "Have you got it?" "I don't
know," "Who did you give it to ? " are bad English, because
they are not used in the hterary dialect. We must conclude
again that all Englishmen use bad English.
It matters little after all whether bad French and colloquial
French are synonymous terms. What is important is clearly-
to realize that the general form of language used in everyday
speech is a variety distinct from the literary, differing from it
in all the aspects of lexicology from phonetics to semantics.
When the European sets out to learn Japanese he is told
frankly at the outset that he must fix his choice either on the
classical literary language or on the colloquial language, and is
shown that the two differ as much as any two cognate languages.
If all students were informed that similar differences (although
not in so marked a degree) exist between literary and colloquial
French, English, Spanish, etc., there would be less time wasted
in misdirected effort and we should no longer see pupils
labouring at the acquisition of the passS defini and the imparfait
du subjonetif as stepping stones to everyday spoken French.
In addition to the three groups of dialects to which we have,
given the respective names of regional, temporal, and social,
we may perhaps also mention artificial dialects.
These are the varieties of a language as used by the majority
64 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
of foreigners, various forms of ' pidgin ' less known but just
as real as the ' pidgin ' English of the Chinese coasts. We
mean by pidgin dialects such perversions as Franco-English
(example : ai mek mi veri ouelle eunderstand hwenne ai gau
inne ennegleunde " ; or Anglo-French: " Zher swee commonsong
der parlay Frongsay tray biang nayce par ? ").
Readers of that ddightful book of Du Maurier's Peter Ibbelsm
will recall the quaint artificial dialects of English jpiid French
invented and spoken by 'Gogo' and 'Tarapatap*nlm.'
Strange as it may seem, the highest aspiration of many
students on both sides of the Channel is toward monstrous
dialects of this sort. How often have we heard apologies for
these commencing " Voyons, c'est deja quelque chose de pouvoir
se faire un petit peu comprendre en anglais ; on fait ce qu'on
peut et, ma foi, on ne pent pas s'attendre a la perfection, quoi ? ;
ce que j'estime, c'est . . ." and so on !
Obviously our inquiry and conclusions include no serious
consideration of such views, nor countenance any such practices.
Such students must be left to the mercies of the quack, and he
alone will profit by their doctrine.
Manifestations. — Our thoughts may be made manifest through
the spoken or through the written word. It is not necessary
for us to compare the relative importance of each nor to
insist upon their mutual independence (no, not interdepend-
ence !). What does concern us is the fact that for most
students a knowledge of both manifestations is ultimately
required, and that in special cases it may be expedient to
"learn one and not the other.
A correspondence clerk who receives orders from his employer
to make himself acquainted with the contents of letters in the
French department finds it imperative to make a special study
of written French as used in modem business correspondence.
If these orders are to be carried out in the shortest possible
time, if his promotion and prospects depend upon such acquisi-
tion with the least delay, it is difficult to see why he should
trouble himself with the phonetic aspect of colloquial French.
If, on the other hand, it becomes necessary for him to travel
in France, to make himself understood at stations, hotels, and
FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 65
in offices, then it is equally difficult to see why he should confuse
his understanding, spoil his pronunciation, and misuse his energy
in learning the French orthographic tradition as applied to the
classical or literary aspect of the language.
For those to whom both manifestations are to have their
importance we shall probably discover on pedagogical groimds
that it will be more expedient first to master the oral and later
on to study the graphic aspects, and only in the advanced stages
to progress simultaneously in both.
Active and Passive Use of Language. — ^Apart from all question
of dialect, apart also from the question of manifestation, we
have to consider two aspects of language which from their very
nature require absolutely different treatment.
The use of a language, in the fullest acceptation of the term,
implies the faculty of transforming thoughts into speech (both
oral and graphic), and also that of transforming oral and graphic
speech into thoughts. The former of these two operations con-
stitutes the active and the latter the passive states of language.
When we speak and write we use language actively ; when we
listen and read we are making a passive use of it.
Many persons are able to use language in one state and not
in the other ; their respective capacities depend entirely on the
manner of their study and training. One who has read exten-
sively and written little may have a passive conunand of the
written language little inferior to that of his mother tongue ;
one who has listened much, who has frequented lecture-halls
and theatres in the foreign country, will have so sharpened his
auditive faculties that nothing of importance escapes his com-
prehension. But neither of these may be able to express his
thoughts in the foreign tongue with any degree of fadility or
accuracy. If the language is a near relative of our own, we may
at first sight make out the gist of an article written in it, but
fail to reproduce a single word of it.
Conversely, a contrary line of study or experience may enable
us to express our most urgent needs, and yet leave us unable to
comprehend what is said or written to us in reply. It is possible
to memorize a hundred or so of the most useful sentences and
to use them successfully, but we have no guarantee that the
66 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
natives will confine themselves to this limited repertory when
answering us.
Although special cases may arise in which either of these
aspects may be of far greater importance or utility than the
other, we shall generally find that both are essential and are
inseparably boimd up one with the other. The correspondence
clerk of whom we spoke may have received instructions to learn
to understand the foreign letters received, and to answer them in
English. But on the whole, let us repeat, the use of the lan-
guage normally comprises the active and the passive aspects.
For certain pedagogic reasons we shall conclude at a later stage
in our inquiry that passive work should precede active work ;
this was the case in our infantile study of the mother tongue.
(c) Extent of Study
The student who contemplates the acquisition of a small
working vocabulary in order not to be entirely helpless when
abroad is in a different position from the one whose aim it is to
be able to use the foreign language like a native. Under the
headings of Incentive and Orientation we have examined cases
in which a partial knowledge of one aspect of a given language
alone is aimed at. Many other examples can be framed, in which
a very limited programme will cover all the requirements of a
given student.
On the other hand, a large number of people set out to acquire
the language in its entirety. The French wife of an Englishman
comes to settle with her husband in England ; she must almost
necessarily become anglicized, and this process includes a con-
tinual progressive study of the language, so that in the end her
knowledge of it will hardly be inferior to that of her own tongue.
For those whose desires or interests induce them to become
naturalized subjects of another coimtry, the almost perfect
acquisition of the foreign tongue is a necessity.
For such people time is not a pressing factor ; they have years
before them in which to pursue their aim. Although it is
natural that they should wish to attain the desired end with as
little delay as possible, a few weeks or a few months will not
FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 67
have the same importance as it has in cases where speed is
the one essential.
When, on the other hand, some tangible results are required
within a given period, when the successful issue of a business
enterprise depends on the practical acquisition of a limited
programme, every hour is of value ; it is simply impossible to
devote the same number of days, hours, weeks, or months to
the formation of those sound linguistic habits which alone
will afford ultimate perfection.
" Quelques notions d'anglais suffisantes pour permettre a
quelqu'un de se tirer d'embarras " is a very different proposi-
tion from " Une connaissance approfondie de la langue anglaise
sous toils ses rapports." To submit to one and the same
programme two students the difference between whose respective
aims is expressed above is to misunderstand or to ignore the
golden principle of adapting the right means to the required
end.
(d) Degree of Study
Apart from considerations of extent, we are faced with the
problem of degree. While the former term is an expression of
quaviity, the latter expresses the species or quality of the desired
knowledge.
Some students wish merely to learn about a language, others
wish to assimilate the material of it. We may call these i^e-
spectively the dftcumentary and assimilative aspects of study.
A philologist often finds it necessary to become acquainted with
the peculiarities of the structure of a given language ; he wishes
to know which are the sounds it possesses, to understand its
ergonic or semantic machinery. This information is necessary
in order to support a theory, or to furnish examples of some
linguistic principle. Just as one's native language can only be
properly appreciated after one has viewed it from the foreigner's
standpoint, so also the nature of inflected languages can only be
understood by the aid of some acquaintance with non-inflexional
languages.
The student of comparative phonetics, ergonics, or semantics
wiU find it of inestimable value to have a rough theoretical
68 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
knowledge of a large number of languages, as will also the
teacher whose aim it is to give lessons to foreigners. For these
and other reasons it often becomes necessary to obtain a first-
hand documentation of certain languages without troubling to
assimilate the matter contained in their vocabularies.
Here again we must be prepared to differentiate between
two classes of students, and to provide programmes drawn up
on entirely different bases in order to suit their divergent
requirements.
A book setting forth the characteristics and peculiarities of
the language in logical and grammatical order, treating ex-
haustively each point in its proper place, is an ideal reference
work for all who are seeking a documentary knowledge. But
such a book gives little or no help to those whose primary
object is to assimilate the material of the language itself.
For them the matter must be sorted and selected in order of
frequency aiid utility, with due regard to the principles of
proportion, ergonic combination, etc.
(e) Manner of Study
The last of the factors serving as the basis of our inquiry is
that which concerns the means of tuition. The vast majority
of language-learners work with a teacher ; indeed, the teacher
is generally considered so essential an instrument that it occurs
to few that his presence is not absolutely Ladispensable. But
in language-study, as in the case of other studies, self -instruction
is not only possible, but in certain cases imperative. How,
except by self -instruction, is the student whose home is a small
English town or village to become acquainted with Arabic,
Urdu, or Chinese ?
There is, however, no hard and fast limit separating those
who study with from those who study without a teacher. There
are many degrees of self-instruction, varying from the case in
which the student is wrestling with the mysteries of, let us say,
Finnish, from a German-Finnish dictionary which he has picked
up at a second-hand bookshop, to that in which he has sub-
scribed to a correspondence covu-se in French and receives his
FACTORS OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 69
lessons and phonograph record weekly by post. The only
difference between the subscriber to the correspondence course
and the pupil who visits his teacher twice a week lies in the fact
that in one case his instructions are conveyed orally and in
the other by the written meditim.
We may sum up our conclusions in the form of the two
following axioms :
1. Let the student determine in advance what is his aim.
2. Let the work of the student be directed in accordance with
his aim.
1. Let us determine in advance what is our aim.
When we take ovir ticket at the railway booking office we
cannot always determine whether our journey will be long or
short, easy or difficult, nor is it necessarily essential for us to
know by what line or series of branch lines we shall arrive at
our destination.
Our fortune on the road is more or less in the hands of the
railway company. But one point we are absolutely forced to
fix in advance, and that is the destination itself.
Before embarking on any enterprise, before undertaking any
work, whatever difficulties may occur and whatever the nature
of the obstacles that lie before us, the end we have in view, the
purpose of oiu* work, is perfectly clear to us.
So should it be when we embark on the study of the foreign
language. It is not sufficient for us to say that we wish to learn
French or Chinese or English ; we must determine what variety
we wish to acquire, of what branch we mean to become the
master.
Why do we want to learn the language ? As a manner of
passing the time ? For reasons of curiosity ? Because we are
impelled to do so for business reasons ? Because the literature
of that language interests us ? In order to have direct access
to scientific or technical books written in that language ?
Because we wish to travel in the country where it is spoken ?
Do we wish to qualify for the post of interpreter ? Do we
wish to be able to imderstand business letters ? Do we wish
to write business letters ? Do we wish to make a speciality of
70 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
the phonetics of the language ? or of its grammar ? or of its
history ?
Do we wish to become teachers of that language ? Is it to
enable us to pass an examination ? Or do we wish to acquire a
general knowledge of the language in its four aspects, speaking,
understanding, Avriting, and reading ?
Is our object the rapid acquisition of the most important
elements, or have we the time for a leisurely siuvey of the whole
of the language ? We must determine our aim, for much
depends on it.
2. Our work must be directed in accordance with our aim.
If we wish to make a study of the literary language, let us
study the literary form and avoid the purely colloquial. If the
ancient literature is our aim, let us study the ancient literary
language. If the commercial language interests us, let us work
in such a way that we shall be able to write and to understand
business letters in the shortest possible time.
If the speaking and the understanding of the spoken language
is not our aim, let us not waste time on this aspect. If, on the
contrary, it is our sole aim, then let us not waste our efforts on
the acquisition of the written form.
If we wish both to speak and to read, then let us study the
two branches proportionately.
When the essential preliminaries have been mastered, let us
aim directly at what we wish to accomplish. Let us master the
elementary preliminaries, and then proceed directly toward the
accomplishment of our object.
PART IV
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC
PEDAGOGY
When we are in possession of full information concerning the
student and his aim we may prescribe for him an appropriate
programme of study. This programane will be drawn up more
or less in accordance with a series of principles which we may
term the Principled of Linguistic Pedagogy.
Section 14.— The Fourfold Aim of the Student. In all but special
cases the ultimate aim of the student is presumed to be fourfold —
namely,
(a) The understanding of the language as spoken by natives.
(6) The understanding of the language as written by natives,
(c) The speaking of the language as spoken by natives.
{d) The writing of the language as written by natives.
To m§ny this principle will appear so obvious as to border on
the trivial ; to others it may appear a novel and revolutionary
thesis. At first sight we might conclude that the partisans of the
Direct Method will agree and that those of the Translation
Method will disagree with this principle, but on further reflec-
tion we shall find that this is not necessarily the case.
In the opening pages of this book we suggested that most
of the friction between the adherents of the various types of
method is due to the fact that the first principles of linguistic
pedagogy are so far undefined. Were it possible to determine
sharply two opposing camps occupied respectively by the
partisans of the Direct (or Reform) Method and those of the
Translation (or Old) Method, we shoiild probably find that
the former tend to favour the principle as we have set it forth,
and that the latter consider it either as a pernicious doctrine
or as a Utopian counsel of perfection.
The old-fashioned (and now generally discredited) school of
71
72 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
linguistic pedagogy proceeded more or less in accordance with
the following formula :
(a) Learn to decipher isolated sentences or texts by
identifying each etymon with its supposed equivalent
in the mother tongue.
(6) Reverse the process and convert isolated native
sentences into foreign sentences on the same etymo-
logical basis.
Proficiency in this bilingual consciousness was considered to
be the essential basis of all language-study, and was tacitly
assumed to result ultimately in the power of reading, writing,
speaking, and understanding the foreign language.
The modem school has done much to expose the fallacy of
this conception ; it proceeds on diametrically opposite lines,
and assumes that foreign languages are to be acquired in much
the same way as we have acquired our mother tongue. The
various means suggested and adopted in furtherance of this
plan are generally spoken of collectively as the Direct Method.
Although this modem school of linguistic pedagogy commands
the respect of the bulk of modem language teachers, there is a
growing feeliag that the means generally adopted do not conduce
to the ends which its founders had in view.
In many cases, indeed, the Direct Method, as used by the
average teacher, resolves itself into the negative precept : There
miist be no translation. We may perhaps be justified in suggest-
ing that the greatest reform is yet to come, and that the basis
of this reform will be the formula that stands at the head of
this section, including the all-important qualifying clauses " as
spoken by natives " and " as written by natives."
Section 15.— Segregation. In order to exclude confusion and mis-
understanding, during the initial period of conscious study the
phonetic, orthographic, etymological, semantic, and ergonic
aspects of language must be segregated from each other and
taught independently. In the process of subconscious study,
and in the later periods of conscious study, such segregation is
neither possible nor desirable.
The principle of Segregation is the logical consequence of the
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 73
fact that the student of language is pursuing simultaneously
four entirely different ends, each of which may conceivably be
subdivided. The types of work which are best calculated to
ensure proficiency in the understanding of rapid speech are
inoperative when used as a means of constructing correct
written sentences ; exercises devised to give the student com-
mand over his organs of speech will not further his power of
understanding what he reads ; ergonics cannot be taught on
etymological lines, nor has orthoepy anything in common with
phonetics; the art of making oneself understood is to be
attained by processes appropriate for this end, but manifestly
inappropriate for any other end.
Whenever we devote a determined period (be it one minutp,
half an hour, or six months) to the exclusive study of a given
aspect of a language we are observing the principle of segrega-
tion. Whenever we teach two or more aspects simultaneously
by means of one and the same form of exercise we are replacing
segregative by aggregative study.
The phonetician requires his pupils to devote their entire
attention to the recognition and to the production of sounds,
excluding all considerations of their representation in the con-
ventional spelling. By so doing he is insisting on the principle
of segregation as appUed to phonetics.
When we are demonstrating the precise meaning of a given
unit we do not allow irrelevant inquiries as to its pronunciation
or its ergonic powers. By so doing we are acting in accordance
with the principle of semantic segregation.
Generally speaking, subconscious study is aggregative, and
conscious study segregative. The former implies diffusion
and the latter concentration of thought. The young child
engaged at an early age in the development of his faculties of
speech is doing so with perfect unconsciousness and without
any regard to the principle of segregation. The adult student,
grappling with problems of the etymological order, concen-
trates the whole of his attention to that which is the immediate
object of his study, and by so doing observes this principle of
segregation.
What is generally called difficulty often turns out to be
74 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
perpleodty, bewilderment, or confusion of thought, a state of mind
which precludes any possibility of effective progress. The
remedy for this is to segregate the factors of confusion, and to
direct successively the attention of the pupil to each of them in
turn.
Just as subconscious study from its very nattire requires the
diffusion of the pupil's attention, so in conscious study should
the pupil focus his entire attention on any phenomenon or
group of phenomena to the exclusion of all extraneous
factors.
In order to carry out the principle of segregation in an ideal
programme the seven following precepts will be observed :
(1) The phonetic aspect will be taught by means of a series
of appropriate exercises, the first of which will deal
with isolated sounds, followed successively by those
dealing with syllables, groups of syllables, and fluent
sentences.
(2) The orthographic aspect will be taught by means of
graduated exercises in reading, transcription, and
dictation.
(8) The etymological aspect will be taught by means of
graduated tables and exercises designed in such a
manner as to demonstrate the mechanism of in-
flexions and derivatives.
(4) The semantic aspect will be taught by means of system-
atic exercises of various types based on material
association, translation, definition, and context.
(5) The agonic aspect will be taught by means of
graduated and systematic exercises based on the
ergonic chart.
(6) Immediate expression will be taught by means of
systematic catenizing and substitution exercises.
(7) Immediate comprehension will be taught by develop-
ing the pupil's powers of subconscious assimila-
tion in a regular and graduated series of passive
exercises.
orthoKraphu"
into ptioaotio,
phonetic int
^orthoxpaphi
OirrilOGHAl'HV
(arKLLiM!)
Thf :irt nl' writing the
^lit letters in thi
right places
EHCONU'S
(R'SCTMS)
The art of building up
riginal (i e. unknown)
sentence-units fn
smaller kimwn
nrt-<
Phoqelic
roading of
jOLiDda. Words,
ftod neotenreM -
PHONETICS
(peonunciation)
The art of articulating
the right sounds at
the right moments
THE
STUDY
OF
LANGUAGES
SEMANTICS
(meamnq)
The iir( of rtssnciatinjf
the ri>ilit meaning
witli u "ivrn untt
R^p«titioo
exercises :
sounds, words.
»Bd nent^aces
CATENIZING
The art of reproducini»
/with fluency and withuu
cunsetiMi^i calculation
the longer units ot"
speech (f^. pllra^.
id sentences)
SUBCONSCIOUS
lOMPUKHENSION
The art of und.-rst.inii-
ing Cimnertcd speerh
(spok-'n or written)
'itliout cons
;d.'llhlh.l
RtfpetiLioo
exon'isf H :
BOund-'. vvonlH,
if-nteii'"'-"^
DIAGRAM ILLUSTRATING THE PRINCIPLE OF
'SEGREGATION' {see pp. 72, 73, 74)
The innei' circles represent the seven chief brandies of language-study,
each of which may be treated systematically and intensively by 7neans
of the exercises shown in the oiiter circles.
7i
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 75
Section 16.— Active v. Passive Work. Study m»y be active or passive.
The young child only comes to speak his native language after
an 'incubation period,' during which he has passively received
and stored up in his mind a considerable quantity of linguistic
material. The same process may profitably be employed by the
more adult person in the study of foreign languages.
During the course of the last twenty or thirty years many
systems of language-teaching have been designed, the object of
which is to cause the language to be assimilated by processes
similar to those by which each of ^is has learnt his mother tongue.
In setting forth the manifest advantages of this over the purely
artificial type of method, it has been rightly observed that the
degree of success attained by adults in their efforts to acquire
a foreign language is always in direct ratio to the degree in
which they observe the natural laws of language-study. It has
been pointed out repeatedly that most persons taking up their
residence abroad acquire with remarkable rapidity and fidelity
the speech of those by whom they are surrounded, provided
that they observe certain conditions. These conditions are gener-
ally assmned to consist of the exercising of their powers of
observation and imitation, unaided by such artificial processes
as translation, etymological analysis and synthesis, or the mental
conversion of written into spoken forms.
In support of this theory it has been pointed out that the
illiterate often seem to succeed where the educated fail; that,
other things being equal, the scholar will be handicapped by
his developed intellect and the peasant will profit by his
ignorance and imformed mental capacities.
A family of French people takes up its residence in England.
A year later the younger children may be speaking to each other
in idiomatic and fluent English ; the older children also speak,
but less in conformity with English habits of thought and
articulation ; the parents, if they speak at all, produce the usual
French variety of broken English.
In view of the vast amount of cumulative evidence tending
to prove this thesis, the compilers of methods appear to be
justified in their efforts to organize programmes of study in
accordance with it. One factor, however, seems to have been
76 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
overlooked, a factor which in the opinion of the writer is the
most essential of all, and the neglect of which constitutes an
omission of the most serious kind. It is the undoubted fact
that the active use of speech under natural conditions is invari-
ably preceded by a period during which a certain proficiency is
-attained in its passive aspect. The faculty of recognizing and of
understanding the units of speech is probably always developed
by the child long before he ever reproduces them in order to
make himself imderstood.
From a most illuminating work by M. Jules Ronjat, entitled
Le DSveloppement du Langage observe chez un Enfant bilingue,^
we may note the following passage :
"II se produit chez les enfants, tant qu'ils ne peuvent pas
articuler, un emmagasinement et une sorte d'incubation. lis
s'assimilent le vocabulaire eh la prononciation. Si bien que
lorsqu'ils peuvent parler, ils ont des le premier jour un vocabu-
laire de vingt, trente, ou quarante mots. Une petite fille
frangaise ayant eu une nourrice italienne qui parlait fran§ais
avec un fort accent itaHen, s'etant mise a parler un mois apr^s
le depart de cette nourrice, a parl6 frangais avec un vocabulaire
du presque enti^rement a ses parents et une phonetique due a
sa nourrice, la personne qu'elle avait le plus entendu parler
dans la premiere armee de sa vie. . . . Une petite fille allemande
passe les dix-huit premiers mois de son existence en Silesie ;
elle n'y acquiert qu'im vocabulaire d'une extreme indigence.
EUe est alors amenee a Berlin, oh. elle acquiert vers Page de trois
ans un vocabulaire normal. La, a I'age de cinq ans, elle produit
tout k coup des toiu'nures silesiennes qu'elle n'avait plus eu
I'occasion d' entendre depuis trois ans et demi ; il est impossible
d'expliquer leur presence autrement que par la pejsistance des
impressions latentes emmagasinies pendant une periode t^^s
recul6e et oh, chose remarquable, 1' enfant ne savait pour ainsi
dire pas parler."
During this incubation period it would seem that a vast
number of units are ' cognized ' in all their aspects : sounds,
combinations, and successions of sovmds, metamorphism, and
the semantic values represented by all of these. We suggest
' Published by Champion, Paris (1913).
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 77
that success in the production on a wholesale scale of linguistic
matter (either in its spoken or in its written form) can only be
attained as the result of the previous inculcation of such matter
by way of passive impressions received repeatedly over a period
the length of which has been adequate to ensure its gradual and
effective assimilation.
Passive work is not necessarily subconscious work, any more
than active work is necessarily conscious. Passive work means
listening and reading ; active work is speaking and writing. We
may listen and read consciously and subconsciously ; we may
speak and write consciously and subconsciously. In the case
of oiu* mother tongue the probability is that there is a vast
preponderance of subconscious work, both active and passive ;
wher the average person studies a foreign language the contrary
is usually the case.
We would suggest that one of the essential principles of all
methods designed on the ' natural ' basis should be never to
encourage nor expect the active production of any linguistic
material until the pupil has had many opportunities of cognizing
it passively. If this principle is valid, then most of the
teaching of the present day violates a natural law !
Section 17.— Semanticizing (i.e. the conveying of meanings). There
are four different manners or modes of conveying to the pupU
the meaning of a given unit.
{A) By material association— ».e. associating the unit with that
which is designated by it.
(B) By translation— t.e. associating the unit viitb the equivalent
native unit.
(0) By definition— i.e. associating the unit with its definition or
paraphrase {i.e. its polylogical equivalent).
(D) By context— *.e. giving examples of its use.
In view of the endless controversies which have raged and are
stiU raging around the subject, it will be well for us to examine
in detail the several confusing factors of that vexed question,
Under what circumstances and in what conditions is translation
salutary or pernicious ?
To -many the difference between the older methods and those
78 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
which are known collectively as the Direct or Reform Method
is equivalent to the acceptance or rejection of translation as
a means of teaching the signification of the units which are the
object of study.
In order not to miss the point at issue, we must note that in
this respect alone translation may perform two functions. The
first of these is to inform the pupil what a given unit means, and
the second is to cause the pupil {by means of repeated exercises)
to form a perfect association between the unit and its meaning.
While some exponents of the Direct Method are fully pre-
pared to admit or even to counsel the use of translation for the
first of these purposes, others are not disposed to tolerate the
presence of translation in any circumstances whatever. It has
often been stated that the inclusion in any text-book of, let us
say, a Fsench-English vocabulary debars us from applying to
such a text-book the term ' Direct Method.'
Let us proceed to examine the data upon which we must base
our conclusions.
{A) Semantic Demonstration by Material Association
When the word or word-group designates concrete objects,
qualities, or actions, the most direct manner of demonstrating
its meaning is to pronounce the word while pointing to, touching,
or handlittg the object, pointing to or otherwise suggesting the
quality, and performing the action to which it corresponds.
We wish to teach the meaning of the words la boUe, la clef,
le crayon, la fenitre, le tableau noir. The most concrete and
direct way of doing so is to point to, touch, or handle the objects
in question : " Voila la boite ; voici la clef ; je prends le crayon ;
j'ouvre la fenetre; je touche le tableau noir." To teach the
colours, we, may point to coloured objects, saying : "Ceci est
noir ; Cela aussi est noir ; Cela n'est pas noir — c'est blanc.
Voila quelque chose de rouge ; Voila du bleu ; §a c'est vert.
Regardez le livre; U est vert. Regardez la boite; elle est
verte." To teach words designating dimensions we may hold
up a long and a short pencil : " Ce crayon-ci est long, celui-ld.
est court " ; we may compare the size of two books and of two
boxes : " Ce livre-ci est grand, I'autre est petit. Voici ime
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 79
grande boite et en void une petite," etc., etc. To teach verbs
designating concrete actions we have only to perform the actions
with a running commentary, such as : " Je prends le livre,
je I'ouvre, Je le ferme, je le mets sur la table ; je marche, je
m'arrete, je me 16ve, je m'assieds ; je laisse tomber la craie,
je la ramasse, je la mets dans ma poche," etc., etc.
" What does s^appuyer mean ? " asks a pupil. We answer
by leaning against the wall and saying : " Je m'appuie contre
le mur." " What is the difference between livre and cahier ? "
asks another. We take the two objects represented respectively
by these two words and say : " Voici un livre et voici un
cahier ; voila encore un livre ; cela aussi est im livre ; cet
object-ci n'est pas un livre, c'est un cahier ; voila encore un
cahier " ; or we may say : " This is un livre and that is un
cahier. Look at the two objects. Is this un cahier or un livre ?
Do you write your exercises in un cahier or in un livre ? "
This is demonstration of the most direct nature possible, and
the most effective in practice, ensuring as it does the most
concrete and most permanent impressions.
This mode may be expressed in graphic form :
y
A
A -
The thing,
quality, or action
designated by the
foreign unit
Foreign
unit
(B) Demonstration by Translation
This consists of associating the foreign word or sentence with
the word or sentence of the mother tongue to which it most
nearly corresponds.
Je ne comprends pas means the same thing as / don't under-
stand. If ever you want to tell a Frenchman that you don't
understand what he says, you may say to him : " Je ne com-
prends pas."
Venez id means the same thing as Come here.
Lundi is the French name of the day we call in English
80 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Monday. It may also mean the same as the English adverbial
polylog on Monday.
Je ne m'en suis pas rendu compte means the same as / didn't
realize it, or I haven't realized it.
Vous n'auriez pas du le faire is equivalent to the English You
ought not to have done it.
" What does chapeau mean ? " asks a pupil. We answer :
" It means hat."
" Does brillant mean brilliant ?"..." No, not quite ; it
is just about equivalent to the English word shiny. "
" What is the meaning of vouloir ?"..." The word has
many meanings, some of which cannot be expressed very easily
in English. Give me the sentence in which the word occurs." . . .
" Je I'ai fait sans le vouloir." ..." That is equivalent to /
did it without meaning to, or / did not mean to do it."
" Does brique mean the same thing as the English word
brick ?"..." Yes, generally."
" What does Pierre mean ? " . . . "It may mean the same
thing as the English words stone or rock, or it may be a proper
noim etymologicaUy identical with the English name Peter."
" Does actuellement mean actually ?"..." No, it does not ;
actueUement may be taken to mean the same thing as at present."
These are a few specimens of a rational procedure of semantic
demonstration by means of translation into the mother tongue.
For the sake of contrast, we append a few specimens of
thoroughly bad semantic demonstration as practised by the
old-fashioned classical school :
" Prendre is the French for to take."
" Quinze jours is fifteen days."
" De means of ov from."
" Encore means again, yet, or still."
" Prairie is the French for meadow."
" Se demander naeans to ask oneself."
" Beaucoup stands for much or many."
'^ Je me leve is the French for / raise me, which is their way
of expressing I rise."
" Temps is the French for time:"
And yet, in face of the obvious benefits to be derived from
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 81
a rational use of translation as a means of explaining the mean-
ings of new iinits, a generation of reformers has been and is
fighting against any form of translation. A generation of
teachers has been trained to consider any form of translation as
an evil. A generation of school-children has been warned never
to open a dictionary.
This mode of demonstration may be expressed in the follow-
ing graphic form :
Y B
Foreign
miit
Word or
sentence in native
language
That which is
designated by
foreign imit
(C) Demonstration by Definition
Another mode consists of demonstrating the meaning of a
foreign xmit by means of its foreign definition, synonym, or
paraphrase.
" Pleuvoir exprime la chute de I'eau contenue dans les nuages."
" Vert est la couleur qui resulte du melange du bleu et du
jaune."
" (Scie = outil consistant essentiellement en ime lame avec
un bord tranchant dispose en zigzag qui sert a couper des
substances resistantes."
" Lever = hausser."
" Tuer= 6ter la vie a."
" Se souvenir de = ne pas oublier."
" Savoir = ne pas ignorer."
" What is the meaning of the French word pont ? " — " IJn
porit c'est une construction en bois, en pierre, ou en acier disposee
de mani^re a permettre aux personnes, aux betes ou aux voitures
F
82 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
de traverser facilement un cours d'eau, tme route, un chemin
de fer, etc."
This mode may be represented graphically thus :
X . c
The foreign
unit
That -which is
designated by
X, B, and C
Foreign
definition, synonym,
or paraphrase ,
B
The word or
sentence in
native language
(D) Demonstration by Context
The fourth and last mode consists of using the foreign unit in
a series of sentences in such a way that its meaning may be
iriferred by implication (as distinct from direct definition or
description).
Alternative terms may be demonstrating by iUtistration or
by use.
The meaning of the unknown word parapluie may be taught
by the following examples of its use, none of which are equivalent
to a definition :
" Voyant qu'U pleuvait j'ai ouvert mon parapluie. II est
prudent de ne pas sortir sans parapluie quand on croit qu'il
va pleuvoir. N'oubliez pas votre parapluie, car je pense que
nous aurons de la pluie."
(To teach the word parapluie by definition we should say :
" Un parapluie est un objet qui nous protege de la pluie.
Quand il pleut nous I'ouvrons, quand il cesse de pleuvoir nous
le fermons.")
We may cause the meaning of the verb recevoir to be imder-
stood by saying : " Si je vous donne quelque chose, vous le
recevez. Si je vous envoie una lettre ce soir vous la recevrez
demain matin."
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 83
The meaning of encre may be demonstrated by the use of
such sentences as, " Quand j'ecris une lettre 11 me faut non
seulement du papier, une envdoppe, vm. timbre, et une plume,
mais il me faut encore de I'encre." This is not a true definition ;
the nature of ink is not described ; we merely imply its nature
by associating it with the other indispensable adjuncts con-
nected with letter-writing.
It frequently happens that a series of sentences containing
a given word constitutes the equivalent to its definition. For
instance, if we said, " Quand on sort, on met presque tou jours
\m chapeau sur la tete. Le chapeau protege la tete des in-
temperies. Un chapeau est fait generalement en feutre ou en
paille,' ' this would be tantamount to the definition, ' ' Un chapeau
est un vetement, fait generalement en feutre ou en paille, qui
se place sur la tete quand on sort, pour la proteger contre les
intemperies."
This mode may be represented graphically thus :
y
D
A
Examples of
use pf the
foreign unit
The foreign
unit
^
A ^
^^^^^
^
-^B/
/
c
That which is
designated by
X, B, and C
The correspc
ing word
sentence in n
languag(
3nd-
or
ative
3
Foreign defini-
tion, synonyms,
or paraphrase
The non-differentiation of modes A, C, and D constitutes the
' Fallacy of the Direct Method.''
Many adherents of what has come to be called the Direct
Method would have us believe that of the four modes of semantic
demonstration, mode B (translation) is indirect and' therefore
to be avoided, and that the three other modes are direct and
therefore to be encouraged.
This statement is not always set forth in categoric terms ; it
84 STUDY AND TEACHING OP LANGUAGES
is generally implied rather than asserted. It is precisely
this tacit assumption of unproved premises that constitutes
what we shall venture to term the Fallacy of the Direct
Method.
The origin of this fallacy is very simple and very obvious.
Mode B (translation) is generally inferior to mode A (material
association) in point of directness ; hence A is termed direct
and B is termed indirect. A minor premise is then assumed :
What is not B is A, and is inevitably followed by the conclusion,
What is not B is direct.
But the minor premise is false. What is not B may be A,
C, or D; hence the conclusion " What is not B is direct " is
false also.
Now an examination of the four modes will show us that as
A is superior to B in point of directness, so is B to C or D. —
We may then say that the 'Direct Method' is founded
to a large extent on the confusion between the modes A, C,
andZ).
The following passage written by an advocate of the Direct
Method is interesting :
" The teacher will endeavour to connect the words of the
foreign language directly with the ideas they express, or with
other words of the same language, not with those of the mother
tongue. Translation will therefore be replaced, as far as
possible, by object-lessons, picture-lessons, and explanations in
the foreign language."
At first sight this principle would seem convincing, but on
analysis it is seen to contain the invalid syllogism :
Words should be connected directly with the ideas they
express ;
Translation is indirect ; therefore
Words should be taught by . . . explanations in the
foreign language.
Reduced to symbols it stands :
X should be explained by A ;
B is not A ; therefore
X should be expressed by A, C, or D.
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 85
A severe critic might even object to the minor premise
" Translation is indirect " on the ground that translation is not
indirect in an absolute sense, but only in relation to the more
direct A.
Not only must we avoid using demonstration by translation,
and direct demonstration as correlative terms, but it will be found
expedient even to avoid the use of the ambiguous terms direct
and indirect.
Material Association
The great value of material association consists in its
compliance with a law of mnemonic psychology known as
Spatialization. This law may be expressed as follows : If
two or more new terms are learnt in the same place, they
will tend to become associated and confused ; if they are
learnt in two different places they will tend to become
dissociated and distinct.
If we make the acquaintance of Mr A and Mr B at the same
place, at the same time, and under the same circimistances, we
shall tend to confuse these two persons with each other ; if
Mr A is introduced to us in London on Monday by our mutual
friend X, and if we are introduced to Mr B at Manchester on
Tuesday by our mutual friend Z, there will be no confusion
whatever between their identities. The difference of time and
of mutual friend is responsible to a certain extent for the
differentiation, but the most important factor is the difference
of place.
In order to appreciate the mnemonic aid rendered by place-
association, let us make an experiment. Write on a sheet of
paper six unfamiliar foreign words and their native translation.
Learn them by continual reference to the paper, and note the
time and effort required to associate each with its native
equivalent and to dissociate each from the five others.
Then write six other equally unfamiliar words and their native
equivalents on six separate slips of paper. Attach one to the
door of the room in which you happen to be, another to the
window-curtain, another over the mantelpiece, and the three
others in three other parts of the room.
86 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Learn the six words by reference to the slips and note how
much less time and effort is required than in the former case.
You will discover that the fact of their being dispersed in space
or ' spatialized ' will effectively prevent one being confused
with the other, and consequently wiU remove that element of
confusion which is after all the main obstacle in all memory
work.
Many other interesting experiments may be made to demon-
strate the immense value of this process of dissociation, but as
these hardly come within the scope of our present inquiry we
must refer the reader to treatises of rational mnemonics and the
psychology of memory. It is sufficient at present to state thai
the operation of material association fulfils to a large extent the
law of spatialization. The teacher points to the door and says
" La porte." The eyes of the pupil follow him and associate
la porte with the door to which he is pointing. He goes to the
window and s^s " La fenltre." It is as if the term la fenStre
is impressed on a new surface of the brain, and lafenetre will not
be confused with la porte, which might conceivably be the case
were the two objects not so spatialized.
One of the reasons for the popularity of many ' direct
methods ' is explained by the fact that the first lesson is often
devoted to the learning of the names of the parts of the room
and of the objects dispersed around it. The great ease with
which these names are learnt and associated by spatialization
leads to the reasonable conclusion that all subseqiient progress
will be as rapid and as easily achieved.
The advantage of material association over translation may
easily be exaggerated or over-estimated owing to the fact that
the former mode is more often than not accompanied by
spatialization ; the eyes of the student are directed successively
to different objects in different places.
Experiments wUl prove that when spatialization is applied
to the translation method, its results are eminently satisfactory,
and in many cases comparable with those obtained by material
association.
When it is convenient to use material association there
is no reason whatever why this mode should not be given
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 87
the preference, but when neither the objects nor pictures
representing them are available, translation is by no means
to be despised, and will very often be found more ' direct '
than the two other modes which we are now about to examine
and analyse.
The value of spatialization lies in the fact that it serves to
separate, and consequently to identify, concepts liable to become
confused with each other. Buying and selling, pushing and
pulling, going and coming, hot and cold, pleased and sorry,
although respectively contrary, complementary, or correlative
terms, are so associated in our minds that there is a real danger
of our confusing the pairs of foreign words which are used to
express them. The writer confesses to having confused for
quite a long time kaufen and verkaufen ; schiehen and Ziehen.
A pupil of his once confused the English words bought and sold
to such an ektent that he was only able to distinguish the two
by spelling out in French the last three letters of bought :
" g, h, t, = fai acheti " !
When the two terms liable to confusion are of a more abstract
nature and represent subjective phenomena not clearly distin-
guished even in the terms of one's own language, some dis-
sociative process is stUl more necessary. The writer has
frequently had occasion to teach successively the three polylogs
hope to, expect to, and mean to. When told that they correspond
respectively to esperer, compter, and avoir Vintention de the
French pupU has often maintained that he was unable to dis-
tinguish the three terms one from another. The terms in
question being of an abstract and subjective nature, the demon-
stration of their meaning by material association is out of the
question. There remain modes B, C, and D. As we have
seen, mode B (translation) is inadequate, for the pupil cannot
immediately distinguish his native terms. Recourse must
then be had to definition or to context, either in English in
order to fix the meanings of the English terms, or in French
in order to demonstrate more concretely the meaning of the
French terms.
In cases, however, where the two concepts are perfectly
distinct or where a concept has a particularly striking character
88 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
there is very little difference between A and B in point of
directness. In practical teaching the equation London =
Londres (mode B) may be more direct than London=[the place
to which I am pointing on this mapl (modification of mode A),
and (if the pupil has any elementary notions of geography) is
distinctly more direct than London is the capital of England
(mode C). For the same reason, mode B is more direct
than The immense agglomeration called London, the seat of the
British government, situated near the mouth of the Thames . . .
(mode D).
Translation is a more direct mode of conveying the meaning
of a unit than Definition, and, a fortiori, more direct
than context.
We may state once for all that translation is generally (but
not always) inferior in point of directness to material associa-
tion ; hence in discussing the merits and demerits of translation
as a mode of semantic demonstration, it would be well to confine
ourselves to cases where paaterial association must be excluded.
As we have already observed, the use of this mode is confined
to material things such as concrete objects, objective qualities
and actions. When, therefore, the foreign units do not stand
for such concrete concepts our choice must fall on modes B, C,
otD.
In weighing the respective advantages of translation and
definition our judgment must depend to a large extent on the
following consideration. We must not unduly presume that
the words of our native language must necessarily be fully or
perfectly understood ; were that the case there would never
be any need to consult our native dictionary except in order to
ascertain the spelling or pronunciation of a given word. If every
word in our own language were perfectly associated with its
meaning or meanings we should already have attained the ideal
state imagined by logicians and should not require that ideal
instrument of thought imagined by Pascal, Descartes, and
others and termed by them the Philosophical Language. We
must recognize that most of the words we use possess but the
loosest of connotations, and that these are in a state of perpetual
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 89
flux and evolution. How many quarrels, law-suits, polemics,
controversies, and even wars are directly or indirectly caused
by imperfect semanticizing ! Misunderstandings due to differ-
ent interpretations of the same term are responsible for most
of our earthly troubles.
Study itself, in all its various branches and ramifications, is
little more than the learning of the meanings of words. The
whole educative process is one long learning of definitions.
There are words in our own language which have cost us
many months or even years to semanticize adequately. We
did not acquire the meanings of such words as subjective,
"parabola, integrate, hypothecate, debenture, carbonate, mesozoic,
syllogism, etc., etc., without much reading and technical study.
Thousands of our monologs and tens of thousands of our poly-
logs stand for most complex concepts and conceptual relations.
Even apart from scientific and technical terms, we shall find
numberless examples of everyday words and expressions the
proper use of which has only become possible after long stages
of perception and association. That we learnt so many
thousands of these at a very early age and that most of them
have been acquired by the subconscious rather than the con-
scious process does not affect the fact that in each case the
association of term and concept had to be gradually developed
over a long period of study (using the term study in its widest
sense). Let the reader examine the last three sentences and
seriously ask himself how he has come to understand the
various abstract terms of which they are composed. Let
him then consider more general and more popular terms
such as realize, afford, fancy, assume, agree, suggest ; let him
imagine a case of complete aphasia or loss of memory and
then let him realize the period of time and the amount of
reading and study that would be required in order to re-form
his associations.
Is it an exaggeration to suggest that each word of our vocabu-
lary required on an average an houj:!s semanticizing spread
over a long period before we were able so to associate it with
its meaning that we coiild use it ?
Now is it seriously maintained even by extreme exponents of
90 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
the Direct Method that we should go through all this work for
each foreign language we study ? We have learnt, let us say,
mathematics, chemistry, or geology in our own language ; we
wish to read up or refer to works on these subjects written in
some foreign non-cognate language. Are we, then, to study
these sciences anew ab ovo in order to avoid the pernicious act
of consulting the bilingual dictionary ?
Poser la question, c'est la r^soudre. Let there be no illusion
on this point ; the most fervent partisan of the Direct Method
translates, whatever his impressions to the contrary may be.
He learns German by reading German books without a diction-
ary. He is reading a technical book dealing with chemistry ;
the word Wasserstoff occurs repeatedly. Our reader does not
refer to a bilingual dictionary, it is true, but in the end he says
to himself : " Ach so, das Wort Wasserstoff bedeutet sicher
hydrogen ! " That he has guessed the translation rather
than sought it does not affect the fact that he has more
or less associated Wasserstoff with hydrogen, and by so
doing has attached to the former the semantic value of the
latter.
Now the perfectly bilingual person, he who has learnt two
languages under natural and ideal conditions, does not hesitate
to use a bilingual dictionary in all cases where his erudition is
not equally distributed over the two languages. He has had
occasion to associate with a certain concept the English word
beaver ; he has not had occasion to associate it with the French
word castor ; he consults his bilingual dictionary, which tells
him that he may attach to the word castor the group of semantic
associations hitherto confined to the word beaver (in its zoo-
logical sense). He does the same thing in the converse case ;
if he has had occasion to form an association between a concept
and a French word and not an English one, he will remedy this
omission by reference to a bDiagual and not a umlingual
dictionary.
As an argumentum ad absurdum let us take the frequent
case of an Englishman who by some accident of circumstances
has come to associate the word hetre with the thing designated
by it. He finds one day that he is ignorant of the equivalent
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 91
word in English. What is he to do ? Go to a forest with an
English companion better versed than he in wood-lore and search
for the tree associated with the term hetre and then ask his
companion to name it in English ? Once again, poser la question
c^est la risoudre ; he will reach down his French-English diction-
ary and ascertain that Mtre = beech.
Now if the most direct manner of learning the meaning of a
native word is to associate it with its foreign equivalent, the
same argument may surely apply to the semanticizmg of a
foreign word of the same nature.
We say advisedly " of the same nature," for there is another
side to the question. The known word may possess no exact
equivalent in the other language, its connotation may be wider
or narrower than that of the word or polylog which most nearly
resembles it in meaning, the native word may be ambiguous and
the nearest foreign equivalent may be precise. In such cases
translation is inferior to mode C, or even mode D.
Upon this point depends our judgment when weighing the
respective advantages and disadvantages of translation and
definition. We venture to suggest the following principle:
When the foreign word to be demonstrated is known to be for all
practical purposes the equivalent of a native word, translation is
a better mode than definition ; when the word to be demonstrated
is known to be a doubtful equivalent or when the value of the
equivalence is unknown, it is more prudent to confirm the transla-
tion by definition or by context ; when the word to be demonstrated
is known to have no equivalent whatever in the native language, ^
then we mv^t have recourse to definition or. to context.
In speaking of demonstration by definition we have so far
assumed that such definition must necessarily be in the foreign
language. We can conceive a mode intermediate between mode
B (translation) and mode C (foreign definition, synonjTn, or
paraphrase). This may be designated by the symbol E, and
would consist of demonstrating the foreign unit by a native
definition, synonym, or paraphrase of the native equivalent
word.
Instead of chaise = chair (mode B) or chaise = meuble consistant
en un siege, quatre pieds, et un dossier, sur Uquel on s'assied
92 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
(mode C), we may use chaise = piece of furniture consisting of a
seat, four legs, and a back, u^edfor sitting purposes (mode E) :
chaise
A
The object to
which I am
pointing
chair (but
not armchair)
English
definition
French
definition
Examples of
use of the
foreign unit
We are told by Direct Method extremists that B is less
'direct' than A ot C ; hence C is superior to B. But if the
foreign definition is direct, then the native definition must
necessarily be far more so ; therefore E is more direct than B !
This is indeed an argument ad ahsurdum, and in using it we
are but pushing to its logical conclusion the Fallacy of the
Direct Method, which assumes that C is more direct than B
because A is (generally) more direct than B !
But it may be claimed that mode C constitutes an interesting
and valuable exercise in the faculty of intuitive comprehension,
that it inculcates the very necessary habit of successful guessing.
This is perfectly true, but let us remember that systematic
exercises for the development of the faculties of subconscious
comprehension is one operation, and the documentation of a
student in the course of his conscious work is another.
There is a time for everything and a function for each opera-
tion. It might be argued that geography, history, mathe-
matics, etc., might be taught to English children through
the medium of the French language, and with salutary and
economical results. To a certain extent this is true during the
later stages of study, but on the other hand there is a limit to the
mmiber of birds that one may conveniently kill with one stone.
To impair one operation in order to make it serve two very
different purposes is ingenious ; so also is the using of a hair-
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 93
brush to hammer in a nail ; but neither of these acts is either
economical or efficacious.
The course of study should and must include systematic and
progressive exercises in immediate comprehension, as it must
also include systematic pronunciation exercises and systematic
substitution exercises and systematic ergonic exercises, but the
worst time to choose for any of these is precisely the moment
when we are teaching the meanings of the units contained in the
elementary vocabulary of the student. Semantic demonstra-
tion is a means to an end and not an end in itself.
The exclusion of translation as a regular means of conveying the
meaning of units is an uneconomical and unnatural principle.
The principle that translation should be excluded as a mode
of demonstrating may conceivably be justified on two counts —
the dictates of necessity, and pedagogic groimds. On pedagogic
groimds also such exclusion is to be condemned.
Let us first examine the two arguments in favour of its
exclusion.
It frequently happens that the teacher is ignorant of the
native language of his pupil, or that the pupil's knowledge of
the teacher's language is superior to the teacher's knowledge of
the pupil's language. In such cases it may be urged that as it
is materially impossible for the teacher to convey the meanings
of words by the mode of translation this mode must of necessity
be excluded.
It may be argued that one of the essential qualifications of
the teacher should be an adequate familiarity with the language
of his pupil. This particular argiunent will, however, scarcely
hold good. It is true that the teacher whose business it is to
give lessons in elementary English to French or German students
ought to possess a working knowledge of French or German,
but it cannot be seriously urged that he should also have learnt
Spanish, Italian, Russian, Arabic, Urdu, Japanese, Chinese,
etc., etc., before accepting an appointment or setting up in
business as a language-teacher. Now in class teaching it fre-
quently happens that while the majority of the members of the
class are, let us say, French, one or two members may hail from
94, STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
parts of the world very far removed from France. An Icelander
can hardly have grounds for complaint if he fails to find in
an English provincial town an English teacher with a sound
knowledge of Icelandic. If the Icelander insists as a sine qua
non that his teacher of English should be perfectly acquainted
with the Icelandic language, he must have recourse, not to a
teacher of English nationality, but to an Icelandic teacher of
English.
Is a teacher, then, to refuse to give lessons to any person with
whose language he is unacquainted or imperfectly acquainted ?
That, of course, is primarily a matter for the student to decide.
If I apply to a Russian for lessons, knowing full well that he has
no knowledge of English, I do so at my own risk, and withhold
from myself the advantages of translation in all its aspects.
Which, then, is better : to learn Russian from a Russian who
is ignorant of English, or to learn it from an Englishman who
has previously studied Russian ? The answer to this question
depends, of course, on the extent of the Englishman's know-
ledge of Russian ; if he speaks broken Russian with an English
pronunciation he must be rejected as a teacher.
But much of this is not to the point. We are discussing as if
dictionaries had never been invented or printing were an un-
discovered art. It is not necessarily the function of a teacher
to semanticize all our words ; this can be accomplished by any
dictionary or manual composed expressly for that purpose.
You, a teacher of English, are giving lessons to a Norwegian.
Your pupil asks you the meaning or the meanings of the English
verb to realize. Do not waste twenty precious minutes in forging
definitions which will be imperfectly understood ; refer your
pupil to a good English-Norwegian dictionary, of which there
is no lack.
The only case in which we. must exclude translation for
reasons oi force majeure is when the pupil's language is one for
which no bilingual dictionary has either been composed or is
accessible.
But the exclusion of translation as a mode of semantic demon-
stration (also as the vehicle for explanations) is often demanded
on pedagogic grounds. It is frequently maintained by exponents
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 95
of the Direct Method that translation in all its forms and
functions is a vicious and harmful proceeding. We will not
contest this point anew, but simply refer the reader to what we
have already said on this particular subject.
We would, however, add that many teachers justify on peda-
gogic grounds a procedure dictated by necessity. We do not
maintain that they do so knowingly or with any insincerity.
An English teacher accepts an appointment at Moscow. He
has hitherto taught English to French students, and, knowing
French perfectly, has never hesitated to utilize translation as
a mode of teaching. He arrives at Moscow ; he knows no
Russian ; he can no longer use the mode of demonstrating
to which he is accustomed, nor can he any longer use the native
language for conveying explanatory matter. What happens ?
Is it by coincidence or is it as a natural consequence of his
position that he suddenly discovers the pedagogic merits of the
Direct Method ? And when in after years he acquires a sound
knowledge of Russian will he still remain faithful to its
leading principle ?
What is, now, the great disadvantage of excluding translation
as a means of semantic demonstration ? We all recognize the
bad habits that may be engendered by associating the foreign
with the native word ; we fully realize that the exclusion of
translation often tends toward a sounder knowledge of the
foreign language. On what groimds, therefore, do we maintain
with such insistence throughout these pages that mode B should
not be rejected ?
In the foregoing pages we have examined an argument in
favour of translation, or, expressed conversely, an argument
against its exclusion.
But there is another reason, entirely unconnected with the
first, which compels us to reflect very seriously before relinquish-
ing this valuable) mode of demonstration.
As we have ajready mentioned, the term direct is an ambigu-
ous and dangerous one. It may be applied to two quite
different things — ^viz. to Semantieizing or to Programme.
Direct semantieizing means the demonstration and teaching of
meanings without the use of translation.
96 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
By Direct Programme we mean the course of study which
conducts the student by the shortest and easiest route to a
practical mastery of the most useful matter of the language.
A Direct Programme can only be drawn up by an observance
of the principles of frequency and ergonic combination. The
former tells us to assimilate the more useful before the less useful
units of the language. The latter tells us that we should give
priority to those units which are readily combinable with their
fellows in order to form sentences.
In another place we shall show that these two principles are
in themselves somewhat contradictory ; that one can only be
fully observed at the expense of the other ; that the ideal
programme is nothing other than a judicious series of compro-
mises between their rival claims.
Now if, when drawing up our programme, we had not only
to adjudicate between the exigencies of frequency and ergonic
combination, but also to make both of these subservient to the
non-translation principle, our task would become an impossible
one ; we simply carmot conform simultaneously to the three
principles.
Let us express this point in more concrete terms. When the
teacher (or method- writer) is about to draw up a programme for
a beginners' coiurse, he has the following alternative choice of
material :
(a) Units possessing the two qualities utility and com-
binability (such as faut-il, hier, comprendre, savoir,
pouvoir, prSt, temps, gare, etc.).
(6) Units of which the meaning may be demonstrated and
taught by Material Association (such as tableau, lime,
ceil, prendre, toucher, rouge, coin, plafond, etc.).
If he chooses his units from class (a) the Programme will be
Direct, and the Semantidzing Indirect ^ ; in the contrary case
the Programme will be Indirect, and the Semantidzing Direct,
for only a relatively small number of units are common to both
classes. Which are we more justified in sacrificing : Direct
Programme or Direct Semantidzing ?
* For the purposes of our argument we will concede to partisans of the
Direct Method the equation translation=indirect semantidzing.
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 97
When we have submitted to a critical analysis the principles
of frequency and ergonic combination, we shall certainly con-
clude that these must at all costs be observed, and that the
claims of the Direct Programme must be given priority over
any claims whatever.
An additional argument in favour of mode B is one which
would appear to have escaped the attention of many writers
on this subject. The tendency of the average student, more
especially in the early stages, is to associate the foreign word
with its native equivalent. We may, if we so choose, assure
him that this is a vicious tendency ; we may go to great trouble
to replace it by the three other modes ; we may refuse to give
the native equivalent and forbid the use of the bilingual diction-
ary. But we do not and cannot prevent the student from
forming bilingual associations if he wishes to do so. We may
say, " Voila la fenetre, regardez la fenetre, j'ouvre la fenetre,"
etc. The pupU will think to himself, " Fenetre means window."
One day when wishiag to express in French shop window, he
will say fenMre du magasin, and in so doing prove our ' direct '
tactics to have been ineffective.
We say, " Je prends le livre ; je le prends ; prenez le livre ;
je prends un livre quand je veux lire ; je prends le train quand
je veux voyager," etc., etc. The pupil will think to himself,
" Prendre means take," and wUl one day say, " Prenez cette
lettre a la poste," or " Mon pere m'a pris a Londres." Again
our efforts to prevent such misuse of prendre have been in vain.
Let us make an experiment in order to see whether our sup-
position is true. We will teach our pupil a number of French
words without translation; among them may be the word
user. At a given moment we will spring upon him the question,
" How would you say tiser in English ? " He will probably
answer immediately, " To use" thus proving that in spite of
our efforts he has associated user with its cognate use, instead
of its semantic equivalent wear.
As a matter of fact, the instant that our pupil heard the word
user he thought to himself, " That must mean use," and from
that moment he paid no great attention to the examples that we
adduced in order to demonstrate the meaning of the word.
98 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Cases occur in which the absence of an authentic and officially
given translation gives rise to the most absurd misconceptions.
Many years ago, when my notions of French were more rudi-
mentary than exact, a Belgian office-boy would come to me in
order to obtain permission to go to dinner. " Est-ce que je
peux retourner, monsieur ? " he asked. I considered this a
somewhat curious question, and answered : " Non seulement
vous pouvez retourner, mais vous devez retourner." The boy
looked puzzled, but went off. The next day the same question :
" Puis-je retourner, monsieur ? " It began to occur to me that
the Belgian office-boy was a different sort of creature from
his English confrere. " Mais oui, certainement vous pouvez
retourner ; il faut toujours retourner apres le diner." With
a look of despair the boy went off to the chief and asked
permission to retourner. " Oui, oui, retoumez maintenant ;
11 est deja passe I'heure ! "
It then began to dawn on me that the equation retourner =
return was a false one, and that it should stand, retourner =^ go
home, or go hack.
Another experiment, this time with a French pupil. We
wish to teach the English polylog go to sleep ( = s^endormir), in
accordance with the precepts of the Direct Method. We with-
hold its translation in order that the pupil may semanticize it
correctly and effectively without confusing cross-associations.
We say to him : " When we are sleepy we go to sleep. In order
to go to sleep we shut our eyes. Some people find it difficult
to go to sleep, others can go to sleep at any time. Don't go to
sleep now ; you must not go to sleep during the lesson."
Now these examples should surely suffice to show that go
to sleep equals s^endormir. Our pupil, however, at the first
example jumps immediately to the conclusion that go to sleep
equals aller dormir. His analytic faculties tell him that if go =
aller and to sleep = dormir (both of which equations are justified)
then go + to sleep = aller dormir. With his preconception he
pays little attention to the precise bearing of our examples.
We ask him : " Comment diriez-vous go to sleep en frangais ? "
He answers : ^'' Aller dormir " ; s^endormir has not even occurred
to him.
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 99
Demonstrate by the Direct Method the English word
ascertain, and the result will probably be the false equation
ascertain = s' assurer (instead of ascertain = s'informer). Teach
a German the sentence " I let him come " without translation,
and the result will probably be " Ich lasse ihn kommen "
( = " I make him come ").
These are not exceptional examples ; hundreds of others
may be quoted to illustrate the point. Books exist the sole
object of which is to correct misimderstandings of this kind.
It is an incontrovertible fact that in cases of this sort
translation is the direct mode of demonstration and modes
C and D (in some cases even A !) are indirect.
Let us recognize frankly that the withholding of an ' official '
or authentic translation does not prevent the student from
forming faulty associations, but that, on the contrary, such
withholding may often engender them.
By a rational application of the principle of translation we
not only furnish the true equivalent, but we also warn the
student against false equivalents. When we tell the pupil that
fenitre means window, we are careful to add that this only
appUes to an ordinary window, and hot to a shop window or
an attic window.
When telling him that prendre is generally the equivalent of
take, we must warn him that this does not include take in the
sense of carry, convey, or conduct.
We warn the pupU that in spite of appearances user is never
or hardly ever the equivalent of use, that retourner is not return,
that go to sleep is not aller dormir, that in spite of appearances
ascertain has nothing to do with make certain and that lassen
is not always let.
Unless we put him on his guard a German will consider to
mean as the equivalent of meinen. A Frenchman unhelped by
an authentic translation will consider the English perfect tense
as the semantic equivalent of his passe indefini and will say :
" I have seen him last year."
When we tell the pupU what is the equivalent word in his
native language we are using this operation in its positive sense ;
when we warn him against error by telling him what it does not
100 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
mean, we are demonstrating negatively. It will be found for
, purposes of negative demonstration that translation is a surer
and more ' direct ' mode than any of the others.
For these reasons, therefore, we may maintain in the face
of all that is urged to the contrary that the exclusion of trans-
lation as a mode of semantic demonstration is unsound both
pedagogically and for reasons of expediency.
No hard and fast rule can be adopted as to the mode of giving the
meanings of units ; each in its turn may be superior to the
others.
How then shall we teach meanings ? What principles are
we to adopt as a general guide ? Which is the right system ?
The answer is obvious : adopt none exclusively, reject none
absolutely. Each variety has its uses, each has its place in
the general scheme, and each in its turn may be the most
rational one.
/ The choice of the mode depends almost entirely on that group
of factors which is the subject of the third chapter of our inquiry.
The most important of these is that concerning the degree of
knowledge already possessed by the student.
We may be giving lessons to an absolute beginner, to one
whose knowledge of the language is represented by zero.
In his case modes C and D are of little utility (during
the first lesson of no utility at all) ; we are confined to modes
A and B. If the words figuring in the first lessons represent
concrete concepts we may well semanticize them by material
association.
If we are asked the meaning of the French word chaise and
there happens to be a chair in the room, we will point to it and
say : " Voila une chaise " (or, " That's a chair "). If no chair
is at hand we will say : " Chaise to all intents and purposes is
equivalent to the word chair, exclusive of armchairs, deck-chairs,
and other non-normal varieties."
If we do not speak the language of our inquirer or if we are '
unable to think of the equivalent word in his language we may
draw a picture of a chair, or, better stDl, refer him to his
dictionary. If, on the other hand, the pupU can already under-
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 101
stand and speak the language we may teach him the word
chaise by definition. But, needless to say, if the student has
already reached such an advanced stage that he understands our
definition he will certainly long since have learnt the word chaise.
The general principle, then, may stand : During the early
stages use modes A and B, and avoid C and D ; during the later
stages use whichever of the four modes happens to be most
convenient.
It must be perfectly understood, of course, that in order that
the translation may be efficacious we must associate the foreign
word with the true native squivalent word or definition, and
not with an imaginary or merely traditional one. Way for
chemin or will for vouloir will never do. If, as is generally the
case, the native word has other meanings than that correspond-
ing to the foreign word we must qualify our information accord-
ingly. If we are asked the meaning of the French verb savoir
it is not sufficient to say that it corresponds in meaning with the
English verb to know ; we must add : " in the sense of to have
knowledge or to be aware of, and not in the sense of to be acquainted
■with."
The more integral such translations the more successful will
be the result. The string of words to which we wish to attach
the meaning must be compared, not with the native equivalents
of each of the units taken separately, but with the native
equivalent of the whole. " Je suis ici depuis quinze jours "
must not be demonstrated by connecting each word with its
assumed English equivalent. We must not say : " Je = I,
suis = am, ici = here, depuis = since, quinze = fifteen, jours = days."
This is an anal5rtical operation which has nothing in common
with semanticizing. We must say : " Je suis ici depuis quinze
jours = ' I have been here a fortnight.' "
We have already alluded to the fact that vast numbers of
our native words the pronunciation and spelling of which we
are perfectly familiar with are either unsemanticized or only
partially semanticized ; they either convey but a vague meaning
or convey no meaning at all to us. We may hear, read, or even
use such words as beech, bowline, flail, without having any pre-
cise notion of what these things look like or what are their
102 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
particular attributes. Many words are vaguely suggestive of
meanings rather than expressive of them.
In such cases it is a moot point whether our duiy is to give
the native equivalent or to employ one of the other modes.
By adopting the latter course the foreign word becomes better
Icnown than the native equivalent. Let us suppose that we
are teaching the French word pignon. We tell our pupil that
it means gable, and discover that he has no precise notion of
what a gable is. The word gable, therefore, is inadequate
to demonstrate the meaning of the word pignon. We teach
pignon then by definition or by illustration. While we are
doing so we are fulfilling the function not merely of a language-
teacher but also that of a teacher of architecture. When we
teach the meaning of mongoose to a Frenchman who has never
learnt the French word mangouste, we are giving a lesson in
zoology. It is an open question to what extent the language-
teacher should overstep the limits which separate the dictionary
from the encyclopaedia.
In conclusion let us take a concrete example in order to show
and to compare the four modes of demonstration. We will
presume our pupil to be an English student of French.
Regarder
Mode A (Material Association)
Je regarde la fenetre. Je regarde mon livre. Regardez
le plafond. Regardez le plancher. Je vous regarde.
Regardez-moi.
Mode B (Translation)
Regarder means look or look at as in the sentences " Look
at me," " Look at your book," " Look out of the
window," " What are you looking at ? " It does not
\ > mean look in the sense of seem, appear, or look like ; it
does not mean look in the sense in which the word is
used in " Look for your book " or " It looks good."
Mode C (Definition)
Regarder veut dire se servir consciemment des yeux.
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 103
Mode D (Context)
Si je regarde par la fenetre je vols des maisons. Si je
veux savoir I'heure je regarde k ma montre. Quand on
veut savoir la couleur ou la grandeur d'un objet on doit
le regarder.
In this case mode A is probably the best of the four.
Section 18.— Learning by Heart, or ' Catenizing.' Learning by heart
is the basis of all linguistic study, for every sentence ever uttered
or written by anybody has either been learnt by heart in its
entirety or else has been composed (consciously or subconsciously)
from smaller units, each of vrhich must at one time have been
learnt by heart. We may term primary matter all units learnt
by heart integrally, and secondary matter all units built up or
derived by the pupil from primary matter.
In considering the functions and advantages of memorizing
(or ' catenizing ') as opposed to reasoning, the important fact is
often overlooked that all study directed toward the acquisition
of the power of using the language is necessarily based on the
faculty of memorizing.
As we have already noted, the progress of the student can
only be measured by his capacity for imderstanding and pro-
ducing fluent sentences. The amateur linguist, it is true, may
maintain that his progress should be measured by his capacity
for understanding and of producing words. He is inclined to
say : " Let us memorize words and let us reason out sentences."
It is quite certain, however, that in both cases the study of
language is ultimately based on memorizing, for the difference
between memorizing ' words ' (whatever the term word may
mean) and memorizing sentences is one not of kind, but of degree.
Modem psychologists incline toward the ' integral ' theory,
and can produce data showing that a given ' chain ' is more
quickly memorized in its entirety than when we memorize its
' links ' one by one.
One of the more important duties of the method- writer or of
the language-teacher is to determine of what the pupil's primary
mutter shall or shall not consist.
104 STUDY AND TEACmNG OF LANGUAGES
The 121 identities contained in the first 11 multiplication
tables (commencing at 2 x 2 = 4 and concluding by 12x12 = 144)
constitute our arithmetical primary matter as far as the opera-
tion of multiplication is concerned ; all other multiplicative
identities must necessarily be treated as secondary matter.
In the classical method of teaching shorthand, the primary
matter consists of the consonant and vowel signs plus the
arbitrary grammalogues ; all the other outlines are treated as
secondary matter.
The actor's lines must all be treated as primary matter ; were
' gagging ' legitimate this would constitute secondary matter.
The essential difference between the (more or less) phonetic
system of writing most languages and the ideographic system
of writing Chinese lies in the fact that in the former case a very
small quantity of primary matter results in the almost unlimited
production of ^secondary matter, whereas in the latter case
every individual unit has to be learnt by heart as it stands ; that
is to say, every Chinese character is a unit of primary matter.
The solving of all problems set by the teacher must be
performed by the faculty of reasoning ; the solutions to such
problems therefore constitute secondary matter. Should the
pupil treat the solutions as primary matter by memorizing them
he will be cheating, and as a measure of precaution the teacher
rightly withholds the key.
Conversely, if instructed to learn a given imit by heart, the
pupil will be cheating if he replaces the process by calculating.
When the teacher instructs the schoolboy to memorize the five
times table he 'has a sound reason for doing so ; the schoolboy
avoids the memorizing operation and when examined produces
the table in question by a series of eleven operations in mental
addition. However praiseworthy his faculty of rapid mental
addition, and however correct the result, the schoolboy is
cheating.
The use of either process, then, constitutes an illegitimate
act when the pupil has received precise instructions to work
by the other.
We cannot state as a general principle that either process is
superior to the other ; each of them has its particular functions,
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 105
advantages, and disadvantages. What these are cannot be
determined with precision on a priori grounds.
We now have to examine the respective functions of the
two processes as applied to the study of a foreign language,
and to come to some conclusion as to what units are to be
treated respectively as primary or as secondary matter.
Let us repeat the fundamental and obvious fact that the total
number of units that we are able to use in a given language have
either been acquired as primary matter or derived from this as
secondary matter ;. no third term can possibly exist.
At first sight one is tempted to assume that, applied to
language-study, primary matter means words and that secondary
matter means sentences, for it is generally assumed that words
are learnt purely by the faculty of memory and that by the
faculties of reasoning we build up sentences from these.
It is assumed, for instance, that we learn by heart words such
as il, est, and id, then from these we derive by synthesis the
sentence il est id.
We now have to ascertain whether this assumption is borne
out by facts or whether it is still another of those popular
illusions which render the whole question of language-learning
so obscure and the subject of so much contradictory discussion.
If we discover this assumption to be true it will enormously
simplify the issue. It will constitute a principle upon which the
whole science of language-learning must be based. It will also
prove that the natural method by which the diild learns its
mother tongue is the wrong method and that our mastery of our
own language has been obtained in defiance of this fundamental
law.
If we discover this assumption to be false we must expose its
falseness and make up om* minds not to allow reasoning to be
influenced by it.
If we discover it to be partially true and partially false we
must decide what are the respective functions of memory and
reasoning, and must determine what matter it is expedient to
treat respectively as primary and secondary.
How did you learn the French words lune, avec, savoir, jaune,
vmir, sauvent, and mais ? By piecing together smaller units
106 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
already acquired? By decomposing them out of compoimd
units already acquired ? By adapting them from other units
already acquired ? Most probably not. It is almost certain
that you did not derive them from other imits ; you learnt
them as they stand by the process of memorizing ; they form a
part of your primary matter.
How did you learn longer polylogical or sentence units such
as venez avec moi, je ne le lui ai pas encore expliquS, c'est im-
possible, savez-vous pourquoi, or parlez plus lentement, s'il vans
plait ?
It is probable (but not absolutely certain) that you have never
learnt these as integral units, but that, having acquired the
power of piecing together smaller ready-learnt units with the
help of E;iglish, you built up such polylogs as you required them.
If this is so, these sentences form part of your secondary matter.
How did you learn aujourd'hui ? As secondary matter by
piecing together the five words a le jour de hui ? Most probably
not ; it is possible that you have never even thought of hui as
being a distinct word.
The unit aujourd'hui is almost invariably learnt integrally
long before learning the component imit hui.
Did you learn maintenant as an integral unit or by piecing
together its component elements main ( = hand) and tenant
( = holding) ? There is a strong presiunption that you learnt it
by the former process. Did you learn to form your native word
understand by building it up from the component units under
and stand, or did you acquire it integrally ? We may, I think,
presume the latter process.
Examine the following list of units and consider in each case
by which of the two processes you « are enabled to use them
(either actively or passively) : pardessus, rez-de-chaussie, d
rnoins que, parapluie, seulement, avant-hier, d propos, lentement,
je ne sais pas, s'il vous platt, s'il vous voit, malheureux, comprenez-
vous ?, tant mieux, il n'y. a pas de quoi, il n'y a pas d' argent,
qu'est-ce que c'est que ga ?, comme ilfaut, ga m'est igal, peut-Stre,
blanchir, id, machine d icrire, quatre-vingts, soixante-quinze,
prononcerai, voudrais, un peu, il y a, sera-t-il, en haut, hicyclette,
bonheur, douzaine, pomme de terre, venir, celui, I'eau, Lemaire,
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 107
le maire, plufne, LemaUre, k maitre, Lacroitc, la eroix, gendarme,
char-d-banc, boite aux lettres, porte-manteau, mipris, dSmSnager,
revenir, refaire, remarquer, mais, repartir, rentrer, abonnement,
encaisser, s'agir, se lever, se demander, s'amuser, affaire, avenir,
comment allez-vous ?, d, bon port, tout le monde, le mien, mon,
beaucoup, chapeau, chou-fleur, lundi, quand mime, pas du tout,
parce que je le lui ai donnS, vous auriez d4 venir, tout de suite,
tout d I'heure, toujours, je mens de, au-dessus, quelque chose,
quelqu'un, quelque part, autre part, quart d'heure, d cette ipoque-ci,
ce matin, au contraire, la semaine prochaine, au fur et a mesure,
nom de plume, de trop, au large, coup de main, coup deceit, mal de
mer, vaurien, suis alU, quinze jours, d rngins que, quoi que, quoique,
bien que, aussitdt que, aussi t6t que, avant que, des que, jusqu^d ce
que, sauter aux yeux, chef-d'oeuvre, maUre chanteur, en face,
d'habitude, en outre, pieds nus, peu d peu, tant soit peu, de peur
que, avoir peur, en premier lieu, d coup sHr, s'en voulair, vouloir
bien, vouloir dire, lorsque, lors de, jmirnaux, hiboux, famililre,
fondamentaux, comprenne, ga se fait, depuis.
The examination of this list opens up a wide field of facts and
conjecture. It will be found that many of the monologs have
been learnt integrally and that many of the polylogs have
not so been learnt. So far this would bear out the popular
assumption.
But in contradiction to this you will have discovered that
some of the monologs have been built up s5Tithetically, and so
constitute secondary matter ; a still more striking fact is that
a larger number, probably the majority of the polylogs, -have
been learnt integrally, and so constitute primary matter.
Is it better to have learnt il y a integrally, or would it have
been better to have learnt the three component parts il, y, and
a, and to put them together as il y a when required ? The
answer is obvious ; had you never learnt il y a as an integral
unit, no process of reasoning would ever have enabled you to
construct this xmit s5Tithetically.
It appears that you have learnt two words bien que as an
integral conjimction polylog in the sense of although. Was this
latter procedure necessary ? Would it not have been sufficient
to learn the adverb bien ( = well) and the conjunction que ( = that)
108 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
as primary matter, and to have derived from these as a synthetic
product the compound conjunction bien que ? Obviously this
would not have been the right course; your knowledge of
the individual words would not have enabled you to guess
that the two words combined correspond to an entirely new
concept equivalent to although.
Did you learn vous auriez du venir as primary or as secondary
matter? Probably as primary matter. Had you wished to
produce the French equivalent of you ought to have come by the
synthetic method the result would probably have been not vou^
auriez d-O, venir, but vous devriez etre venu.
It is difficult to see how you could have treated coup de
main or cowp d'ceil otherwise than by memorizing them
integrally.
Are you ever tempted to say le semaine prochain ? If so it
proves that you have learnt to produce the French equivalent
of next week by synthesis, for had you learnt it as an integral
imit it would be impossible for you to make the mistake in
question.
If you ever hear an English student say a la contraire or sur
le contraire you may safely conclude that he has just formed
the polylog by synthetic construction. If you ever hear any
one say tant le mieux you may conclude that this person has
considered it expedient not to treat the French equivalent of
so much the better as primary matter.
II n'y a pas d'argent might be formed synthetically from il y a,
ne pas de, and argent, but it is difficult to see how il n'y a pas de
quoi can become part of our linguistic baggage except by treating
it as primary matter and so learning it integrally.
Most French <;hildren seem to be unconscious that quatre-
vingts is composed of the two units quatre and vingt ; they have
learnt it as an integral polylog. Probably the average French
child is no more conscious of the parts of tout le monde than is
the English child of everybody. It is with a certain shock of
surprise that the French child discovers that s'^7 vous plait is
nothing other than si la chose vous plait.
When we use the adverb next door we are not thinking of
the door which is nearest to our own house ; the polylog
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 109
has been assimilated as primary matter. So also the French-
man has no cognizance of the ultimate units beau and coup
in heaucowp.
Neither the Frenchman nor the Englishman connects the
Franco-English word char-d-banc with its individual parts when
using it.
Ask the Frenchman the meaning of the French words fur
and rez ; for a moment he will be as puzzled as the Englishman
when asked the meaning of the English word fro. The average
Englishman may use the polylog to and fro all his life without
cognizing the existence of the element fro.
The Frenchman is no more conscious oi the decomposition of
puree que than is the Englishmati of because.
The yoimg child learning his mother tongue certainly does
not confine the memorizing process to monologs. As a matter
of fact, the yoimg child does not distinguish monologs from
polylogs. He learnt la croix by the same process as that by
which he learns the proper noun Lacroix ; he learns pomme de
terre not as a word group signifying pomme qui vient de la terre,
but as an integral word in itself like haricot or orange. Indeed,
when the child first begins to write, it is exceedingly difficult for
him to know Afrhich are the conventional orthographic units that
we call monologs.
If we pass from French and English to languages of which the
graphic unit is the syllable we shall find new data to convince
or bewilder us. And what of unwritten languages in which
obviously no graphic imits exist at all ?
The monolog of one;^ language corresponds in meaning and
function to the polylog or the miolog of another. The French
tartine is equivalent to the English piece of bread and butter ;
French diffidlement is equal to English with difficulty ; English
while generally expresses the same thing as pendant que.
Furthermore, the polylog of one century becomes the mono-
log of the next, and the miolog of the future. The monolog
cupboard used to be the polylog cup board. At the present
day a Frenchman treats this unit, not as a synthetic product
of cup and board, but as an integral primary unit.
Turning to the converse side of the question, we may discover
no STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
vast numbers of monologs which we produce synthetically by
composition or by derivation.
A foreigner having learnt harmless integrally will not hesitate
to recognize or to produce harmlessly ; knowing the monolog
bright and the miolog ness, he will produce by synthesis bright-
ness ; knowing folir, we may forge repolir, or knowing repolir
we may hazard polir with a fair chance of success. The
cumbrous but none the less convenient German compound
monologs are cognized and learnt in exactly the same manner
as their polylogical English equivalents.
All these considerations tend to show among the other things
that the accident of graphic continuity has little to do
with the point we are examining, that primary matter is not
I restricted to monologs and that secondary matter may
include them. Were every German monolog to be treated
as primary matter our study would be as infinite as the
number of German monologs. Were every French polylog
to be treated as secondary matter our French compositions
would be as lucid to a Frenchman as pidgin English is to a
Cockney, and all French reading matter would be as hard
to decipher as Assyrian cuneiform.
To what conclusions must we come and what principles may
we enimciate as a result of examining the foregoing examples ?
Let it be stated as axiomatic that, ceteris paribus, the integral
assimilation of the matter of a given language is just as difficult
or just as easy as the integral assimilation of the matter of any
other language.
Some languages are said to be more difficult or more easy
than others. As a concrete instance, Russian is said to be
extremely difficult and Danish relatively easy for an English
student. This statement is rightly based on the fact that
Russian is a highly inflected language, whereas Danish is not.
And yet a Russian child and a Danish child will learn their
respective native languages in their colloquial form with the
same or approximately the same ease.
The deriving of a regular plural noun from the singular is
a remarkably simple operation in English and a remarkably
difficult one in German, and yet the German child learns his
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 111
native plural nouns with approximately the same ease as the
English child learns those of English.
The order of words in a French sentence is irregular in a very
high degree ; in English the word-order is far simpler, and yet
the French child learns to form his sentences with approximately
the same ease as the English child.
Stated in general terms, the fact is that the native user of a
language subject to complex laws will, all other things being
equal, make almost as few mistakes as the native speaker of a
language subject to very simple laws. It may indeed, be re-
garded as an axiom that all languages in their colloquial form
are equally or almost equally easy when considered from the
point of view of their respective native users.
This most significant phenomenon can only admit of one
explanation, and can point to but one conclusion. Let us
ask ourselves rnider what conditions the respective solutions
of a complex and of a simple problem are equally easy.
I' The answer is clear — ^viz. when we learn the respective solutions
by heart !
The obvious conclusion is that when we learn our native
language, whatever it may be, in learning how to solve its
problems we learn by heart the solutions of the problems.
Reducing this statement to more precise terms, we may state
as an incontrovertible fact that we treat the fundamental matter
of our native language not as secondary, but as primary matter.
The essential difference between a difficult language and an
easy one hes in the respective difficulty with which secondary
matter is derived from the integrally assimilated units.
If German is a difficult language, it is because, having learnt
singular nouns, we are xmable without much calculation to
derive from them their plural form ; because having learnt, as
primary matter der, die, das, Buch, Tinte, and Bleistift, we are
forced to calculate in order to derive as secondary matter der
Bleistift, die Tinte, and das Buch.
The comparative ease and difficulty of languages, apart from
phonetic and orthographic considerations, can only be estimated
by reference to the formation of secondary or unseen matter.
However complicated the mechanism of a given language, the
112 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
natives themselves learn it with precision at an early age because
they use the two processes in their natural and right proportions.
Students of foreign languages generally produce results which
are far inferior because they depend too little on primary matter
j and too much on secondary matter.
There would then appear to be three distinct advantages in
assimilating integral units rather than in deriving secondary
matter by inference :
1. Exclusion of any possibility of error.
2. Relief from the burden of abstract calculation.
3. Immediate utility of matter so learnt.
Let us illustrate the three points by concrete examples.
1. Exclusion of Error
No one who has treated integrally the polylogs la dent and
le tonnerre can possibly say or write le dent or la tonnerre. No
Frenchman who has learnt as primary matter I always go to
England will ever produce I go always in England. No English-
man who has learnt Ich bin mit meinem Freund gekommen will
ever be tempted to say Ich hahe gekommen mit mein Freund.
Were the Frenchman to learn ought to, hardly ever, I want him
to go, ii^tegrally he would never say / ought go, I go nearly never,
and / xinll that he go.
2. Relief from Calculation
In the second place, the integral process relieves us from an
intolerable burden of abstract calculation.
The following sentence formed by an English student by
synthetic construction will necessitate twenty-five separate
efforts of the mind :
Ich hahe mit grosstem Vergniigen seinen freundlichen Vorschlag
angenommen.
1 to 9. Choice and recollection of the nine words in their
employed uninflected form (presuming Vergniigen, freundlich,
Vorschlag, and annehmen to have been previously acquired as
primary matter).
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 113
10 to 18. Respective position of each.
19. Derivation of superlative from gross.
20. Recollection of the neuter dative singular case-inflection
of an adjective when not preceded by article, etc.
21. Determination of gendef of Vergnugen.
22. Recollection of the masculine accusative siagular case-
inflexion of the possessive adjective sein.
23. Ditto for the adjective freundlich.
24. Determination of the gender of Vorschlag.
25. Derivation of the past participle angenommen from the
infinitive annehmen.
By learning the whole sentence as an integral imit, these
twenty -five efforts would be reduced to one — ^viz. the production
of the complete sentence in response to some stimulus.
3. Immediate Utility
An Englishman ignorant of French finds it necessary to pay
a short visit to a remote French village where no interpreter is
likely to be foimd. A few days before his departure he asks our
advice on the linguistic question. We shall not advise him to
study the French conjugation, nor the rules for the formation
of the plural of nouns and adjectives ; the short time at his
disposal will preclude all possibility of doing any synthetic work.
We may perhaps advise him to purchase some sort of tourist's
pocket phrase-book and to make use of it by showing any
appropriate sentence to the natives.
But this is not language-learning at all ; it is merely a con-
venient substitute. The only advice we can give him from the
point of view of language-study is to learn by heart such integral
units as oui, non, je ne comprends pas, je suis Anglais, y a-t-il
quelgu'un id qui parte anglais, donnez-moi ga, oil?, combienF,
comme ga, faifaim, etc., etc.
This is primary matter. He need not know whether he
is using monologs or polylogs. He will be unable to vary
or to adapt any of these units ; he must use them just as
they are, and do the rest by gesture and by reference to his
book.
114 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Twelve categories of units may profitably be treaied as primary
matter.
We may now perhaps venture to draw conclusions from the
various facts which we have examined and to lay down a few
general rules concerning the respective functions of the two
processes of study in order to determine what units should be
treated respectively as primary or secondary matter.
There would appear to be twelve cases in which integral
assimilation has an advantage over the complementary process.
1. When a monolog constitutes an entity imdecomposable
into significative parts and underivable from its etymological
members it must necessarily be treated as primary matter. No
possibility exists of deriving by sjmthesis such fimdamental
units as bon, ici, oiX, comme, le, faire, commencer, souvenir, cam-
pagne, suis, viens, verrez, vu, pris, meilleur, lui ; go, come, be,
book, good, with, went, came, children, men, women, better, worse,
am, is, ought.
2. When a monolog can be decomposed into its ultimate
units only by the aid of historical etymology, it would be well
to treat it as primary matter. Maintenant, toujours, bonheur,
gendarme, aujourd'hui, affaire, avenir, beaucoup, lundi, remarquer,
depuis, abonnement, rendez-vovis, celui should be leamt integrally,
as should such English words as perhaps, Wednesday, thirteen,
because, afternoon, somewhere, forget, funny, alone, understand,
hardly, yesterday, fortnight, never, neither.
3. When a frequently used monolog, although decomposable
without any special knowledge of etymology, is not generally
regarded by the natives themselves as a compound, more especi-
ally when the meaning of the word does not represent the sum
of the meanings of its component parts, it will be well to treat
it as primary matter. The following are examples : chou-fleur,
quelque chose, quelqu'un, lorsque, pardessus, parapluie, paravent,
blanchdtre, encaisser, dSmenager, bicyclette, malheureucc, seulement ;
cupboard, waistcoat, forehead, something, upstairs, downstairs,
seventeen, presently.
4. When a monolog is a derived or compound word of which
the elements can only be ascertained by reference to the
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 115
ancestral or some other foreign language it should be treated
as an integral iinit. Examples : imprimer, exprimer, entrer,
bibliotheque, tSUphone, iiinSraire, vicinal, traduire, candidal,
fauteuil, riclamer, impossible, satisfaire, giographie, and all
words artificially composed in imitation of Latin, including
nouns ending in tion, sion, ence, ance, age, ure, etc., adjectives
ending in able, ible, eux, etc.
5. When a polylog constitutes a unit of which the semantic
value is not the sum of its component monological parts or of
which the component parts are not present to the minds of the
native, it must be treated as a primary tmit. Bien que no more
represents the sum of bien and que than understand represents
the sum of under and stand. Examples : quand mime, tout de
suite, tout d Vheure, venir de, tenir a, il y a, tout le monde, quinze
jours, s'agir, s'en alter, un peu, pomme de terre, cnmme ilfaut,
qu'est-ce que c'est, qui est-ce que, peut-etre, d moins que ; next
door, of course, all right, how much, last night, good-bye, had better,
would rather, used to, on account of, in spite of.
6. When a polylog constitutes a imit of which the individual
parts are likely to be misplaced or confused with others, it should
be taught as an integral imit. To ensure that such polylogs
may be treated as primary and not secondary matter, it often
becomes necessary to write these as one word ; this is a very
convenient device when using the phonetic script. Examples :
lafenetre, la porte, le mur, la dent, le tonnerre, du pain, de V argent,
de la crime, commencer d, finir de, a la fin, au milieu, la semaine
prochaine, assez de, pres de, me le, le lui, suis venu ; ought to,
had better, would rather, at the end, in the middle, tell him to, on
Sunday, half a dozen, hardly ever, more than, as much as.
In this category we may place a vast number of polylogs
composed of what Sweet calls adjunct-words and head-words,
such as article and noun, preposition and noun, etc.
7. When a polylog is composed of elements rarely used in
any other context it is advisable to treat it as primary matter.
Examples : je suis, suis-je, sera-t-il, il faut, rez-de-chauss6e,
induire en erreur, aufur et a mesure, to and fro.
8. When the polylog is the natm-al equivalent of a native
monolog it will be found expedient to treat it as a primary unit.
116 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Examples : en haul, en bos, laisser tomber, le mien, jusqu'd ce que,
ce que, vouloir dire, coup d'oeil ; go in, go out, come back, get up,
sit down, shall go, how much, ought to, on Monday.
9. When a sentence is of idiomatic or irregular construction —
that is to say, not to be composed by any laws of reasoning nor
analogy — ^it should be learnt as if it were a simple monolog as
primary matter : Examples : Je n'y puis Hen ; SHI y a lieu ;
II n'y a pas de qu^i ; SHI vou^ plait ; Je veux bien ; Qu'est-ce que
c'est que ga ? ; Cest pour rire ; Qa m'est 6gal ; Qa ne me fait rien ;
II ne vaut pas la peine ; I canH help it ; It doesn't matter ;
It isn't worth while ; How do you do? ; I wish you a happy
New Year ; Turn to the left ; It looks like rain ; Whafs the
matter ?
Into this category we place such stereotyped expressions as
-proverbs and well-known quotations.
10. A certain number of regular sentences serving as char-
acteristic illustrations of important lexicological laws should be
learnt by integral assimilation. In order to ensure their treat-
ment as primary and not as secondary matter, these sentences
should be thoroughly inculcated and assimilated at a very
early stage. Examples : Je ne le lui ai pas donne ; Personne
n'est venu ; Je le lui ai dit hier soir ; Que lui avez-vous dit ? ;
Je ne peux pas venir id demain matin ; Je Vai vu la semaine
derniere ; Ilfaut que je lefasse ; Oil, voulez-vous quHl aiUe ?
11. A certain number of regular sentences may be thoroughly
assimilated at a fairly early stage in order to enable the student
to make immediate use of his knowledge. This is more especi-
ally necessary in the case of adults who are contemplating a
visit to the foreign country or are expecting foreign visitors.
Examples : Je ne vous comprends pas ; Je suis anglais ; Parlez
plus lentement, sHl vous plait ; Qu'est-ce que cela veut dire ? ;
Donnez-moi cela ; Je ddsire une chambre ; Eveillez-moi a huit
heures ; J'ai un peu faim ; Je suis fatigui ; Que puis-je avoir
a manger ? 0
12. A certain number of regular sentences should be
thoroughly assimilated in the early stages as primary matter
in order to serve as model sentences to be developed by the
student in the form of substitution tables.
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 117
The integral memorizing of a number of models is the best means
of obviating the pernicious habits to be described in a later
section under the heading " The Six Vicious Tendencies."
There is evidently no reason why categories 10, 11, and 12
should not coincide. The sentence Je ne vous comprends pas
serves as an illustration of the general rule for the formation of
negative sentences. It may serve as a model for the deriving of
secondary matter by substitution, and it is probably the most
useful sentence which anybody can learn when about to pay
a first visit to France.
We may sum up these twelve lists or categories by stating
that primary matter should consist of
(a) All simple and imderived monologs and a vast number
of compound and derived monologs.
(6) A vast number of polylogs (practically all those which
are semantically equivalent to monologs).
(c) An indefinite number of sentences, both regular and
irregular.
What then remains to be treated as secondary matter ?
When shall the student begin to use his reasoning faculties ?
The answer is clear, and may be put in as concise a form as
the question : the student is to use his reasoning faculties in
order to learn the residue.
Of what does this residue consist ?
It consists in the first place of all monologs derived or com-
posed by the normal and regular laws of derivation and com-
position ; it consists also of all the polylogs which do not come
imder headings 5 to 8 ; and, lastly, it consists of all the countless
millions of sentences not included under headings 9 to 12.
In view of the great advantages offered by the assimilation
of primary matter over the production of secondary matter, why
shall we confine the process to the twelve categories enumerated
above ?
The obvious answer is that the number of units which can be
assimilated integrally diu'ing a whole lifetime represents but a
tiny fraction of the infinite number of combinations possible in
any given language.
118 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Sooner or later our integrally assimilated units must be
supplemented by a vastly greater nmnber to be produced by
the student himself by the inferential process.
Is this, however, not in contradiction to what has been stated
earlier ? Have we not concluded that we learnt our native
language as primary matter ? Not so. We have never
ventured to make such a sweeping and absurd assertion. We
I have concluded that we treat as primary matter not the whole
but the fundamental matter of our native language.
Even in this case we must not assume that the matter of
a language can be dichotomized into fundamental and non-
fundamental units. The two terms are purely relative, for no
unit can be considered as fundamental in itself.
Nor do we wish to suggest thait the child assimilates funda-
mental units up to a certain moment and from that moment
onward abandons the process in favour of inferential production.
jThe two processes are used concurrently during the whole of
our lives. What we do maintain is that in the very early stages
the assimilation of primary matter is used in a larger degree, and
that its use decreases in proportion to our general linguistic
progress. Conversely the comparatively small amount of
productive work of the early stages increases little by little
in direct ratio to this progress.
We may now inquire whether existing methods, both ancient
and modem, treat as a fundamental factor the distinction
between the two classes of matter, and consider with any
measiu-e of consistency the two processes of study.
The critical analysis of a large number of methods over a
period of many years conveys the impression that this factor,
in common with otheii vital factors, has been completely over-
looked.
Indeed, in many modem methods the only sentences appa-
rently considered fit matter for integral memorizing take the
form of archaic proverbs and infantile nursery rhymes I
We noted earlier in the present section the extreme import-
ance of a thorough imderstanding of these two processes ; we
hinted that the conclusions which result from their perfect
differentiation and a knowledge of their functions would have
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 119
a most vital bearing on the whole question of language-
study.
We will now venture to assert that in all but the most ex-
ceptional cases no method can possibly be sound which does
not treat as primary matter most or all of the twelve categories
of units that we have enumerated and described. All methods
which assume monologs alone to constitute essentially the
primary matter to be assimilated integrally, and which leave
categories 5 to 12 to be treated as secondary matter to be
derived by the student himself, must be rejected as unsound
f and unpractical.
We may repeat the reason upon which our judgment is
founded : Unless a vastly greater number of units are treated by
the pure faculty of memory than is generally the case, the student
will acquire, not the capacity of forming correct sentences, but the
capacity of making unlimited mistakes, and by so doing will form
habits which it will require perhaps years to eradicate !
Section 19.— Gradation. In order that the pupil may proceed by the
line of least resistance, he should pass from the known to the
unknown by easy stages, each of which will serve as a preparation
for the one immediately following.
It is considered by many that gradation implies passing from
the incorrect to the correct, from broken speech to that used
by natives, from hesitation to fluency. It has often been stated
that perfection can only come from the gradual elimination of
the factor of error. We would urge that the factor of error
should never be allowed to obtain any footing at all. All errors
other than those made by native speakers are abnormalities,
and the results of a faulty method. We cannot and must not
tolerate any system of teaching which will lead a student to
pass off infinitives as past tenses, to use singulars instead of
plurals, or to consider the nominative to be the imiversal case.
It is chiefly in this respect that a general standard programme
differs from a special corrective course. The latter is designed
expressly to eliminate the factor of error from the speech of the -
victims of faulty methods ; the former is a sy^WMgOf teaching
designed to result in correct speech and not^^^ut correct
120 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
speech ; hence the inclusion in our basic principle of the clauses
' " as spoken by natives " and " as written by natives."
What is error ? Of what does it consist ? Surely error is
nothing other than the using of forms which are unknown to
the native speaker or writer. An English student of French
says [i:t na: fou pai] ; the Frenchman says [infopa] ; conse-
quently the former constitutes an ej;ror or a series of errors.
An English student may say or write Townnerre ; no Frenchman
says or writes la tonnerre, consequently this is an error. No
Frenchman would ever say " J'ai ^te ici pe«r deux jours " in
the sense of " I've been here for two days " ; consequently the
sentence is erroneous.
Error, however, is not confined to the using of non-native
sounds, non-native combinations, and non-native meanings.
The unit of language as used normally by natives is the fluent
sentence ; consequently the normal use of non-fluent sentences
constitutes error. The progress of students can only be measured
by their capacity for understanding and for producing fluent
sentences.
The following passages extracted from How to Learn a
Language ^ emphasize the value of this dictum as considered
from the point of view of the student of missionary linguistics :
" Unless speaking, like piano-playing, is automatically correct,
the result is not enjoyable. The only way to ensure this auto-
matic accuracy in pronunciation, vocabulary, and construction
is to learn all sorts of sentences, by frequent repetition, until an
inaccurate sentence becomes an impossibility. When one has
thus memorized his sentences they become matrices for thoughts.
They are well-formed moulds into which all statements of that
i character readily fall. No pains spent on absolutely fixing these
in the memory can be too great."
" Every art and science has its fundamentals. He who
would be a master of any art must gain an automatic command
of its basic principles. And just as the master of computation
must have the sum, difference, and product of the nine digits
at his tongue's end, so must the master of every language have
^ A clear and concise exposi of a remarkably sound system of language-
study, published in New York in 191 6 by Thomas F. Cummings.
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 121
as ready a command of its pronunciation, construction, and
vocabulary. To get one's phrases correctly at the second or
third trial is about as satisfactory as a like readiness would be
in making change for railroad tickets. If, however, one knows
his language expressions as well as he knows his multiplication
tables, he may rest satisfied. Anything else is annoyance and
vexation."
" Our standard of attainment is five syllables per second. He
who can deliver his language material at this rate of speed
may rank as a skilled workman. Less than this is not
efi&ciency."
" The only way to learn accuracy is by being fluent, for fluency
is an integral part of accuracy. He who does not sing to time
is inaccurate. He who does not speak to speed is also in-
accurate."
" Recognition of failure is the first step toward success, but
some foreign residents are so far from such recognition as to
say : ' These people do not imderstand their own language.'
True enough ! Not as spoken by a raw foreigner."
If the work of a serious student is characterized by a certain
proportion of error, it is a fairly trustworthy sign that he is
doing work which is too difficult for him : there has been faulty
gradation. All work performed by pupils in accordance with a
properly graduated method under ideal conditions should be
marked by extreme facility and extreme accuracy.
Gradation does not imply the learning of the easier aspects of
language as a preparation for the more difficult. To consider
the written form as a stepping-stone to the spoken form is one
of the most popular fallacies of the amateur student of language,
and the one which leads hiin the most surely to broken or pidgin
speech.
What we can do, however, to ensure gradation on sound and
salutary lines is to regulate the quantity of units in accordance
with the capacities of the average student, to work from the
' easier toward the more difficult forms of exercise, to select the
more used in preference to the less used ergons, and to avoid
abrupt transitions.
In order to draw up an ideal progranune in accordance with
122 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
the principle of gradation and all that this term imphes, we may
conveniently divide the whole of the scholastic period into three
stages, to be termed respectively Elementary, Intermediate, and
Advanced.
When the student is able to vmderstand about three-quarters
of what he hears and reads, and is able to express correctly
about half of whatever he wishes to say or write, the remainder
of his study may (if this is considered expedient on other
grounds) proceed almost entirely on the basis of the sub-
conscious process. The moment considered favourable for
the entry of the pupil into this new phase may be termed
the Point of Transition.
Section 80.— The Microcosm. In order that the pupil may reach the
'point of transition ' with the least delay, the vocabulary must be
selected with the greatest care and perspicacity ; it should include
none but the commonest and most characteristic units, represent-
ing the most important ergonic classes. A vocabulary of this
nature may be termed the Quintessence or the Microcosm of
the language. This Microcosm should be formed and organized
systematically in accordance with and as a compromise between
the principles of Frequency, Ergonic Combination, Concreteness,
Proportion, and General Expediency.
In view of the fact that a large number of units will have to
be the object of conscious study, and in every way thoroughly
assimilated, and also that most of these are destined to be
combined with each other in order to produce an almost un-
limited stock of secondary matter, the utmost care must be
exercised in the selection of these units by the method-maker.
The best method of selecting the matter is first to draw up
on fairly broad lines a rough microcosm of the language, and
then to make a definite choice of units more or less in accordance
with the five somewhat conflicting principles of Frequenq/,
Ergonic Conibination, Concreteness, Proportion, and General
Expediency. The result will be a nucleus of the language,
a quintessence of its most useful and most characteristic
parts — ^in short, a practical if not perfect microcosm of the
language.
We will examine each of these principles in detail.
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 123
Frequency
The lexicological units of all degrees of graphic continuity
and of ergonic completeness may be classified according to their
degree of frequency or rareness — i.e. according to their degree
of utility. It is evident that it is more useful for a foreigner
to be able to use words like go, is, here, and I than words Uke
fidelity, quarry, or transit. It may also be asserted that the more
frequently used words will be the more easily learnt, from the
mere fact that they are frequent, for since the frequent words
are to be found in every text either spoken or written, the
foreigner will be more likely to assimilate them than those only
figuring at rare intervals.
Since the memorizing or catenizing of words is at best a tedious
process, it is obviously the duty of an instructor, when choosing
the matter to be memorized by the student, to select the more
frequent and to reject the rarer units of vocabulary. If the
memorizing of five hundred of such units is deemed to be a
necessary stage in the study of a particular language there are
at least two reasons why each of these should be chosen from
among the frequently used and not the rare ones, the first repos-
ing on utilitarian and the second on pedagogic considerations.
We will imagine that we have before us two books, each
\mtten with the intention of teaching us some foreign language.
In the first few pages of the first we find a vocabulary roughly
equivalent to the following :
Cherry, diligent, idle, roof, mouse, plough, jump, swim,
nightingale, formerly, Dutchman, buckwheat, beautiful,
Mary, Charles, lest, uncle, acorn, grasshopper, door-nail,
huntsman, rejoice, unsubstantial, wearisome, praise, enemy,
feign, honeysuckle, turbot, beseech, weep, daily-growing,
shudder, prating, misbecome, peevish, wild boar.^
The other book, in its first pages, contains a vocabulary
roughly equivalent to the following :
/, you, he, somebody, something, nobody, nothing, am, is,
are, have, has, came, go, know, understand, do, see, hear.
124 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
take, it, this, that, not, never, good, bad, ready, tired, very,
too, quite, here, there, mine, yours, what, who, where, when,
can, nrnst, will.
Is it not evident that our choice would fall on the second
book without a second's hesitation ? What is there about this
vocabulary which attracts us, and what is it that repels us in
the first ? Is it not merely the respective degrees of frequency
and rareness ?
We feel that even if we only succeed in mastering the first
few pages of the second book we shall know something worth
knowing, and that in the first case if we even succeed in learning
the heterogeneous group of words we shall certainly have for-
gotten them long before ever having the occasion to use them.
- May we then consider it possible to divide all the words of a
language into two categories, the useful and the useless ? At
first sight it would appear possible to do so, but a moment of
reflection wiU show us that between the two extremes there
must be an imperceptible transition, that instead of two distinct
categories respectively of frequent and rare words there is an
infinite number of degrees of frequency. A few experiments in
the practice of drawing up lists of the 100, 250, 500, and 1000
most used EngUsh etymons or ergons would be the best demon-
stration of the difficulties of such classifications and prove the
necessity of working in accordance with precise principles, and,
when the possibihties of reason are exhausted, even of invoking
the arbitrary.
It should be noted that all frequency statistics in order to be
valid must be based on considerations of relative speciality and
generality. The more a word is special, the more difficult it
is to assign to it its true frequency value. The word French
is a most important word for a Frenchman, and of compara-
tively Uttle importance to a Chinaman, for instance. The
word Folkestone is a most frequent one in the speech of
Folkestonians. Hammer, in the speech of a carpenter, is of
far greater frequency than in that of a tailor.
If we wish to compose a fist of the 500 most frequent EngUsh
monologs, is the word like to figure once or twice ? If we are
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 125
contenting ourselves with a list of mere raorphons, it wiU appear
once only ; if our list is based on etymological considerations, it
will also appear once only, for the verb like and the preposition
like are both identical in origin. If our list is to be based on
ergonic grounds it must appear at least four times, as infinitive,
as present tense, as adjective, and as preposition. If we include
semantic considerations the word must figure as many times as
it has meanings. There is a vast difference between a list of
morphons, etymons, ergons, and semanticons, and we must
decide in advance according to which of these aspects we are
working. Some would include as separate units the eight
words be, being, been, am, is, are, was, were ; others will include
only the word be and refer to the seven others as mere ptosonic
varieties. A list of words to be used for systematic pronvincia-
tion exercises will contain as a sLagle unit the word mine and
ignore the ergonic and semantic differences between the two
varieties as in This is mine and This is a mine. But such a
list will treat foot and feet as two units, as would the ergonic
list ; the semantic list would include foot at least twice, once
with the meaning of pedal extremity and the other with that of
twelve inches.
Ergonic Combination
Given the words it, this, that, is, was, not, good, bad, large,
small, new, ready, here, there, in, out, away, back, it is possible to
combine them into 288 perfectly rational and eminently useful
sentences.
Given the words, he, am, take, go, come, no, of, the, my, very,
quite, now, it is impossible to form (apart from a few laconisms)
one single sentence, although these words represent an even
higher degree of frequency than the first list.
The most carefully calculated frequency statistics based on
etj^nons or morphons represent but lists of minor ergons, and
as our pupil can never be encouraged or expected to learn
isolated minor ergons on any considerable scale they will be of
little or no practical value in a book of instruction.
If we decide that the first pages of such a book should contain
the word am, we must also include the word /, without which
126 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
am is a perfectly useless word. If we decide on presenting the
present tense of the verb be, we must choose at the same time a
group of adjectives or of adverbs of place, together with a few
words to serve as subjects, in order that be may be studied in
the form of sentences.
If, on the other hand, we decide on take, see, know, understand,
tell, etc., as our first vocabulary, we must provide a few subjec-
tive and objective ergons with which the verbs may be combiaed.
In observing the principle of ergonic combination we must
not neglect the principle of frequency, although the latter must
be subordinated to a certain extent to the former. Were we to
carry out the principle of frequency to its logical conclusion the
pupil woiild hear nothing of nouns nor see a single example
until fully 200 other words had been learnt, and yet -without
nouns certain words of the highest frequency degree, such as a,
the, my, and your, remain but meaningless particles. We must
«i be prepared to make mutual concessions of frequency and of
ergonic combination so long as such concessions are not too one-
sided. We cannot, for instance, exclude from our first lessons
half a dozen nouns on the pretext that their presence will in-
validate our frequency statistics, nor may we introduce a large
niunber of rarer words in order to utilize fully the principle of
ergonic combination.
This principle may be stated as follows : Certain groups or
categories of ergons possess the power of almost tmlimited
combination ; other groups of equal frequency have not this
power of combination. The most interesting exercises are
those which consist of combiniag words and ringing changes on
a small number of words on the basis of previously memorized
models.
In every programme there is generally a place where a word
may be introduced to the best advantage. The right moment
to introduce uert/, rather, too, and quite is when the pupil has
just learnt his first group of adjectives ; the right moment to
introduce here is when the pupil has just leamt come. The best
time to teach some is when the pupil is learning the polylogs
there is and there are. Plural nouns and numerals combine
well ; yesterday, last week, etc., should be leamt with the first
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 127
preterites ; not yet combined with the anterior tenses form most
useful and natural sentences.
The best way to gain a iirst^aand knowledge of the nature of
this principle is to draw up a set of substitution tables ; this
interesting work will result in many curious surprises and shed
much light on the powers of ergonic combination possessed by
the most frequently used words.
CONCRETENESS
Let us examine the following two lists of words and inquire
into the essential difference between them.
1. I, you, here, there, this, that, door, zdndow, ceiling, wall,
floor, arm, hand, pocket, take, put, go, come, move,
shake, push, pull, open, shut, on, under, over, against,
one, two, three, large, small.
2. People, language, man, something, everything, somebody,
water, shop, train, bird, know, understand, do, think,
expect, mean, like, wonder, ask, answer, for, with,
without, of, to-day, yesterday, Monday, town, country,
very, too, good, bad, ready, busy, beautiful, ugly.
There does not seem to be any great difference in their relative
degrees of utility. On the whole, the second group appears to
be somewhat favoured in this respect. The first group seems
to possess better possibilities of ergonic combination. Beyond
these two facts there does not seem to be any marked differ-
ence between them.
But let us suppose that it falls to us to teach these words to
a foreigner who so 'far knows no word of English and whose
language is imknown to us. A very striking difference between
the two groups then becomes manifest. If we are in a room
(and lessons are not generally given in the street) a few element-
ary gestures and actions will make clear to our pupil the meaning
of the words contained in the first group, whereas the most
violent gesticulations would be necessary in order to give even
the faintest notions of the meanings of those in the second
group. A beatific expression of admiration may convey the
idea that the object of our contemplation is beautiful, but even
128 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
then our conception of beauty may not agree with that of our
pupD. An expression of disgust and loathing may suggest
that we are trying to convey the idea that something to our
mind is ugly ; or we may convey the expression that we have
been poisoned or that we are awaiting a visit from a dentist.
Our onomatopoetic rendering of the idea train will result in
puffings and snortings which may suggest a grampus or a futurist
orchestra. Even a professional gesture specialist might exhaust
his powers of mimicry without conveying anything but the
vaguest impressions of the second group of words.
It would appear to be a psychological fact that we learn with
comparative ease the names of concrete things, qualities, and
actions, and with comparative difficulty the names of things
which are not present, qualities which are not visible, and actioi^s
which we do not see performed. It will therefore be necessary
at certain moments, more especially in the earlier stages, to
sacrifice both the frequency principle and that of ergonic com-
bination in order to introduce words of which the only merit
is their facility of immediate comprehension.
The teacher will find it convenient to introduce the names
of all the objects in the schoolroom, to give undue importance
to words such as ink, chalk, blackboard, handle, ceiling, and desk,
not because of their intrinsic utility, not because of their value
in substitution tables, but because of their concreteness. Better
than all pictures, better than all definitions, and suggestions by
context, are the things themselves. It is quite impossible to
reconcile the principle of frequency with that of concreteness,-
for, generally speaking, the most frequently used words are
precisely those which it is the most difficult to concretize, and
vice versa. The only escape from the dilemma is to work on
parallel lines, alternating concretizing exercises with others of
which the object is to present material in accordance with the
laws of frequency and of ergonic combination. J
Propoetion
A teacher who spends nine-tenths of his time and energy in
the teaching of verbs, who has made a speciality of their mani-
fold classifications, modifications, and aspects, doubtless does
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 129
good work. But by crowding all the other categories of ergons
as mere appanages to the verb, he is not an ideal teacher ; his
interest being centred upon his speciality, the verb, he offends
against the principle of proportion. A language method should
treat each ergonic division according to its importance, and not
develop any particular one at the expense of others.
The various parts of speech and their subdivisions should be
introduced proportionately, the development of each should
proceed on parallel lines. A given lesson may introduce, let
us say, a group of adjectives, a few adverbs of degree with which
to modify them, a few nouns as objects of modification, and a
sprinkling of the members of the verb to be to show the predica-
tive relation. The next lesson should change the subject and
deal, let us say, with a new group of verbs, or a new tense of
verbs already studied. The next lesson should concern, let us
say, prepositions and a new set of nouns, to be followed by
another, relating, let us say, to conjunctions and subordinate
sentences. A series of complements of time might well follow,
succeeded by the study of a new group of pronouns. Having
run round the ergonic circle, we may again revert to adjectives
and increase the nucleus formed some half dozen lessons before.
In this way each part of speech receives due and proper atten-
tion, so that each may play its part in the development of the
pupil's knowledge of the language.
The principle of proportion should be applied not only to the
ergonic categories, but also to other aspects of language and its
study. Phonetics is a very interesting study and one of the
foundations of sure progress, but an overdose of phonetics may
be detrimental instead of beneficial. A doctor is not satisfied
with the impatient patient who swallows a whole pint of tonic
instead of the prescribed three tablespoonfuls a day.
General Expediency
In addition to the more or less precise claims of Frequency,
Ergonic Combination, Concreteness and Proportion, there are
certain minor requirements which we may treat imder the head-
ing of General Expediency.
When drawing up a list of words or a substitution table it
ISO STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
often happens that the inclusion of a comparatively rare word
will complete and round off a category. If by considerations
of the frequency principle we omit it, not only will this cause a
more or less perceptible gap in the category, but later on it will
be difficult to find a place for it.
The word hundred is of far less importance than one, two, or
three ; the word thousand is less useful still, and miUion is a
comparatively rare word. The ideal principle of frequency will
not allow us to present at the same moment words of such widely
separated degrees of utility, and yet to omit the words thousand
and million in a lesson devoted to the teaching of numerals
would constitute a lacuna hardly to be justified by any considera-
tions of frequency.
For a second example let us suppose that we are devoting an
early paragraph to the words always, generally, usually, often,
sometimes, and never. Frequency statistics tell us that these
words are, roughly speaking, of the same importance, but con-
sign ever, hardly ever, scarcely ever, rarely, and frequently to an
outer radius, and seldom, ordinarily, and occasionally to a still
more remote radius. And yet all these fourteen words belong
to the same ergonic family (adverbs of frequency generally in
the pre-verbal position) and are mutually interchangeable in a
substitution table. Whether the comparative rareness of the
latter words induces us to relegate the whole group to a later
lesson, or whether the comparative frequency of the former
words leads us to introduce it in an early lesson, we transgress
in either case the laws of frequency. But if such transgression
results in our cutting up the group into three we may be offend-
ing against the laws of common-sense by spoiling an otherwise
perfect substitution table in which there is exactly room for all
the fourteen.
In such cases in order to round off our subject instead of
leaving it with ragged edges, we may certainly subordinate
frequency to expediency. As a matter of fact it is difficult
enough to compose a substitution table in such a way that all
the combinations will make rational sentences without further
handicapping ourselves in our efforts toward an impossible
perfection.
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 131
Other cases will readily occur to teachers, in each of which
the inclusion in our microcosm of some unit is justified by
reasons which do not fall directly under any of the principles
we have named and examined.
Section 21.— Subconscious Comprehension. The pupil's powers of
subconscious (or immediate) comprehension will be developed
concurrently with his conscious study of the microcosm, and
quite independently of the matter contained therein.
The student may become proficient in the use of the foreign
language either consciously or subconsciously. In the former
case he converts unknown into known matter by dint of con-
scious efforts directed more or less systematically by the teacher
in a series of specific and appropriate exercises ; in the latter
case the language is assimilated spontaneously and automatic-
ally without any conscious efforts on the part of the pupil.
By intuition and not by intelligence the yoimg child comes to
understand his mother tongue ; by intuition and not by in-
telligence he may come to imderstand a foreign tongue. The
adult, relying not on intuition, but on intelligence, makes much
slower progress and attains inferior results.
Of the vocabulary possessed by any person proficient in the
use of a foreign language, a very small proportion has been
acquired by conscious study, probably less than five per cent ;
the bulk of his vocabulary has been acquired by subconscious
assimilation. A rational programme should therefore be de-
signed with a view to enabling the student to utilize with the
least delay and to the fullest extent his subconscious faculties.
Dming the whole period of study, one of the most profitable
and interesting forms of work will be that which has for its
main object the development of the pupils' capacities of under-
standing fluent speech. It will matter little whether the units
of which it is composed have been the object of previous study
or not. If the teacher realizes the exact functions of this form
of work, recognizes the limitations of his audience, and pursues
the system regularly and consistently, the pupils will in a
refnarkably short space of time come to follow intelligently and
with ease the fluent speech of the teacher.
132 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
It must be clearly understood from the outset that the object
of this type of work is not to provide material for conscious
assimilation, not to furnish a vocabulary which the pupils will
be expected to retain either as a whole or in its individual units,
but to give the pupils an ideal series of opportunities for exer-
cising and developing those powers of direct and subconscious
Understanding without mental analysis or calculation. It is
designed to appeal to intuition and not to intelligence ; the
result produced may be considered as an end in itself, or may
be considered as an auxiliary to the conscious and intelligent
study which will be pursued concurrently.
The attitude of the pupils will be that of a passive receptivity ;
they will listen and watch, and by dint of listening and watching
will gradually come to follow the trend of what is being said to
them, and understand the gist of what they hear. In the first
instance their comprehension will be vague and of the nebulous
order, but as time goes on the diffuse nature of their compre-
hension will become more precise, and after some fifty short
periods of this type of work they will be able to follow the
thoughts of the speaker with ease.
Although the main object of this form of exercise is to foster
habits of direct comprehension without the mediation of analysis
or reasoning, we may also assume that a secondary group of
results will be attained by these same means.
These talks, repeated day by day, will serve as a series of
subconscious ear-training exercises ; unfamiliar sounds and
unfamiliar combinations of sounds will gradually ^ome to be
familiar ; these continual immersions in the sea of sounds will
in many cases result in the absorption of the sounds ; they will
linger in the ears, and the organs of speech will tend to conform
' themselves to the auditive impressions. Let us remember that
it is almost exclusively by this process that each of us at an
early age learnt to articulate and to produce the sounds of our
mother tongue.
Although primarily designed as a purely semantic exercise,
this will probably (if not certainly) entail the assimilation or the
, partial assimilation of many ergonic and etymological facts.
The continual audition of [lafneitr] or [moliivr] will tend to
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 183
ensurefuture correctness in distinguishing masculineor feminine.
It is intelligence and consciousness (not intuition and sub-
consciousness) that have ever produced lefenitre or ma livre.
Similarly, at a later period, when the pupil is taught that
objective personal pronouns do not follow the verb, but pre-
cede it, the previous ear-training provided by these talks will
serve as a conclusive and effective corroboration. The teacher
will say : " You have never heard me say Je prends le, have
you ? It would sound funny if I were to say Je donne lui le,
wouldn't it ? " and this appeal to the ear will be found more
effective than all the ingenious rules of etymology or ergonics
ever written.
The procedure of the teacher will be somewhat as follows : —
He will first compose a rough-and-ready series of talks, either
in outline or in the more developed form. In the earlier lessons
these will be based on the conditions actually present : the
schoolroom, its occupants, the furniture, and all or any of the
concrete objects to be found therein. Each of these talks will
suggest others, either extensions of the first or entirely new ones.
The resourceful teacher will probably acciunulate an extensive
stock of these exercises to suit the particular needs of his various
classes, and adapted to any special or local conditions.
In the earlier lessons much care must be exercised to fulfil
the four essential conditions of subconscious (or intuitive) as
opposed to conscious (or intelligent) work. These four con-
ditions we will proceed to examine.
1. Gesture
Were the teacher at the first lesson to sit at his desk and
reel oft, with impassive features, without gesture, movement,
or pause, a description of a country ramble or a railway journey,
it is quite certain that no result whatever would be obtained.
If, on the contrary, the teacher talks about the objects of the
schoolroom, and illustrates his talk by an abundance of appro-
priate gestures and facial expressions, there is every chance that
he will make himself perfectly understood from beginning to end.
This, then, is the first condition to be observed. When
184 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
speaking about the window the teacher will invariably point to
or look toward the window ; when alluding to a book he will
point to, take up, or touch a book ; he will point to himself at
each occurrence of the words je, me, moi, mon, etc. ; id. Id,
Id-has, etc., will each have their appropriate gesture ; negative
sentences will be accompanied by a shake of the head, and /
questions by a raising of the eyebrows.
But there are, alas 1 teachers who plead an inability to use
gesture or facial expression, or who confess to a rooted dislike
of such histrionic artifices. We hear them say : " We are
teachers, not cinema actors ; we teach, we do not perform."
We must answer that such people must be classed among those
who have no aptitude either for using or for teaching colloquial
French ; they are to be numbered among those who have mis-
taken their vocation.
2. Interest
In order to maintain interest, all semblance of monotony must '
be avoided. Variety is one means of ensuring interest, and
movement is another. A lifeless enumeration of the names of
objects, of their qualities and attributes, will not result in a
successful lesson. This does not mean that the teacher is to
perform acrobatic feats and excite the pupils' sense of the
ridiculous. He need not jump over chairs to illustrate the verb
sauter, nor crawl along the floor to demonstrate the meaning
of ramper. Between such exaggerations, however, and the
tedious repetition of some himdreds of nouns there is a wide
difference, and few teachers, if so minded, will experience any
difficulty in steering a middle course.
3. Semantic Order
The words, sentences, and other imits used by the teacher in
the course of these talks should not be enunciated in any
mechanical order. It is no part of this tj^e of work to demon-
strate facts of ergonics or etymology ; our immediate purpose
- is to develop the pupils' powers of subconscious comprehension,
not of the theory of speech, but of speech itself. At another
moment and by other tactics we shall teach the pupil to calculate
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 185
and to reason, but we cannot profitably combine in one and
the same exercise appeals to the consciousness and to the
subconsciousness.
At first sight it would appear an admirable idea to proceed
by series of pairs, such as :
Void le crayon, voild la plume.
Void le papier, voild la botte.
Void un crayon, voild une plume.
Void un livre, voild une bolte.
This, however, would be but a form of etymological or ergonic
drill smuggled into and spoiling an exercise designed for other
ends. Nor might it be successful even as drill, for the pupils
might gain the impression that le must be used after void and
la after voild.
Void le crayon, void les crayons.
Je prends la plume, je prends les plumes, etc.,
may be a good form of drill when exercised at the right moment,
as may also be
Ced est le crayon, ced n'est pas le crayon.
Ced est la plume, ced n'est pas la plume, etc.
These and all similar forms of mechanical demonstrations are
excellent in their place and considered as appropriate means
to a predetermined end, but the fostering of the ability to under-
stand rapid and fluent speech is quite independent of any forms
of grammar drill.
4. Uninterrupted Passivity
Many teachers will feel an almost irresistible desire to include
in this form of exercise an occasional question, to be answered
by the class or by an individual pupil. Encouraged by the
evident success of his efforts to be imderstood by the pupils,
the teacher wiU be sorely tempted to test his success by giving
his pupils a chance to respond by means of speech.
This would be a fatal error of tactics. It would immediately
change the whole character of the exercise. It would interrupt
the current of thought ; it would convert subconscious into
136 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
conscious effort. Tlie pupils, anticipating future interrogations,
would immediately abandon that passive attitude so favourable
for the subconscious reception of impressions ; they would
henceforth make efforts to grasp and to memorize the individual
words, and these efforts would tend to destroy the collective
impression conveyed by the talk as a whole. lis ne verraient
'plus laforet a cause des arbres.
Instead of the nebulous recognition of the sentence " Je
ferme la porte," there will be a conscious retention of two isolated
units [fesm] and [poit], with mental translation and mental
mispronunciation. As an ultimate result of the pure sub-
conscious comprehension of la porte the sight of the door will
evoke the reaction [lapDrt], whereas the conscious compre-
hension will probably produce as an immediate reaction either
[poit] or [is: pDit].
In addition to these considerations, we must also bear in mind
that any interruption whatever in the current of passive thought
will militate against the success of the whole exercise. There
must be fluency and continuity. We cannot stop to experiment
n6r afford breaks of twenty seconds in order to correct faulty
answers. Unless there is a constant and uninterrupted flow of
sentences the purpose of this tj^e of work will be frustrated.
The subconscious and conscious processes of study have each
their advantages and disadvantages ; consequently the ideal
programme must include both and reject neither. In order
to ascertain to what extent and in what degree each of these
is to be employed in a language course, we may draw up and
frequently consult the following list :
Subconscious Study
Advantages Disadvantages
Cumulative rapidity. Comparative slowness during
Little inteUigence requisite the first stages.
on the part of the pupils. Of little educational value as
Naturalness of resultant pro- mental gymnastics.
ducts. Inaptitude for purposes of a
Immediate comprehension corrective course.
of normal rapid speech.
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINGUISTIC PEDAGOGY 187
Conscious Study
Advantages
Comparative rapidity dur-
ing the early stages.
Concrete progress.
Of educational value as
mental gymnastics.
Utility in reacting against
vicious tendencies.
Value for purposes of a
corrective covuse.
Disadvantages
Comparative slowness dur-
ing the later stages.
Beyond the capacity of dull
pupils.
Unnaturalness of resultant
products.
Inaptitude for fostering
habits of immediate compre-
hension of normal rapid speech.
PART V
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME
Having reviewed the main principles of Linguistic Pedagogy, we
will now endeavour to draw up a working programme embody-
ing the conclusions suggested by our inquiry. We will consider
as a standard programme that which will prove to be the most
suitable for school-children. It will comprise the study of the
foreign language (which we will assmne to be French) in its oral
and written aspects with a view to active and passive use.
The whole period of study will be divided into three stages.
Section 22.— The first or elementary stage, bi the duration of at least
one term, will consist of : '
(a) Easy exercises in subconscious ^mprehension.
(&) Imperative drill,
(c) Easy articulation exercises.
{d) Easy exercises in the use of phonetic symbols.
(e) Simple talks on the five lexicological theories.
The inexperienced but enthusiastic amateur worker, impatient
of results and fired with the energy and ambition of all enthusi-
asts, is no sooner in possession of his apparatus than he flies
to work in order to achieve concrete results the same day, the
same morning, within the hour if possible.
The expert worker, less enthusiastic, but more practical, is
desirous of achieving more rapid effective resiilts, and so spends
the first hour or the first day in cleaning the apparatus, over-
hauling the instruments, sharpening the tools, arranging the
workroom, labelling the bottles, and providing himself with the
himdred and one little things that will ensiare economical and
uninterrupted work.
At the end of the second day the expert is contemplating with
pride the result of his finished labours ; at the end of the second
138
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 189
day the amateur finds it necessary to scrap his work and start
a&esh.
The inexperienced but enthusiastic language teacher, im-
patient of results, and fired with the energy and ambition of all
enthusiasts, is no sooner in the presence of his pupil than he
flies to work in order to get him to speak, read and write, and
understand the language within three months, within one
month, within the space of one lesson if possible.
The expert teacher, less enthusiastic, but more practical, is
desirous of achieving more rapid effective results, and so spends
the first lesson, the first month, or the first three months, in
teaching the sounds of the language, in cultivating t"he pupil's
faculties of auditive perception and imitation, in grounding him
in the first principles of practical phonetics, semantics, and
ergonics, in initiating him in the first principles of language and
of language-study, in doing the hundred and one little things
that will ensure economical and iminterrupted work.
At the end of the first year the expert teacher and his docile
pupil are congratulating each other on the result of their joint
and successful labours ; at the end of the first year the ama-
teur is wondering why his pupil can neither speak, read, write,
nor understand the language, and the pupil, if intelligent, is
probably looking out for another teacher.
The apparatus used in language-learning consists primarily
of the pupil's organs of speech and hearing. An auxiliary set
of apparatus consists of the pupil's faculties of discrimination
and analogy. To these may be added the necessary comple-
ment of documentary matter enumerated and described in a
later chapter of this book.
If the student wishes to do effective work and make effective
progress, the initial stage of his study must be devoted to
getting into working order the apparatus upon which his success
depends. If his aims comprise the using of the spoken language,
a sound preliminary knowledge of its sounds is indispensable ;
no progress is possible until each one has become perfectly
familiar. The sounds stand to the spoken language in the same
relation as the letters to the written language ; in the same
way that thp capaci,ty of tracing letters is an indispensable
140 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
preliminary to the study of writing, so also is the capacity of
articulating sounds an indispensable preliminary to the study of
speaking. As our first efforts in the case of the native language
were directed to the mastery of our native sounds, so also must
the first efforts of the student be devoted to the sounds of the
foreign language.
The first lessons will be devoted almost exclusively to
systematic pronunciation exercises, first by learning to recognize
and to reproduce the individual soxmds, then by learning to
combine them in monosyllabic words, and subsequently in poly-
syllabic words and short polylogs, and finally to acquire the
art of correctly reproducing the longer polylogs and complete
sentences.
No sharp line of demarcation can be drawn between pronuncia-
tion exercises proper as understood by the phonetician and
catenizing exercises as understood by the language teacher. The
faculty of catenizing, or learning sentences by heart, is merely a
development of the faculty of remembering isolated soimds and
short words ; there is no difference of kind but of degree.
While learning the foreign sounds, the student must also
learn to associate them with the graphic forms by which they
are represented. This does not necessarily mean that he must
at once commence the study of the conventional system of ortho-
graplhy. The student of the Chinese language may postpone
for a while the study of the ideographs invented by the Chinese,
as these are merely a graphic auxiliary to the language proper.
Nor would we suggest that the student engaged in the study
of the French spoken language should disperse his efforts at
this early stage in devoting any attention to that cumbrous and
curious system known as French orthography.
The graphic forms that we recommend are the sjTnbols corre-
sponding to the sounds themselves and known as phonetic
symbols. The most suitable system will most probably be
found to be that of the International Phonetic Association, not
only on account of its intrinsic merits and adaptability, but also
in view of its widespread diffusion in all countries.^
For the sake of economy it is desirable that the words and
' See Appendix for list of phonetic symbols.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 141
sentences used during the pronunciation exercises should be
selected from those forming part of the ergonic tables of the
second stage ; in all but exceptional cases there appears to be
no objection to providing the integral translations of the imits
serving as phonetic examples, nor is there any grave objection
to be urged against learning such bilingual equivalences as
(what is teimed commercially) a side line.
Some time must necessarily elapse before the student is
perfectly familiar with all the sounds of the foreign language,
but the more his attention is focused on the immediate object
of his study the sooner will the desired result be obtained.
Since it would be dangerous to embark on a more ambitious
type of exercise until the mastery of the sounds is complete, we
may utilize the preliminary period to teach the broad funda-
mental principles of the lexicological sciences. We may intro-
duce the theory of phonetics and show how sounds are classified ;
we may compare foreign sounds with their nearest native equiva-
lents, laying particular stress on the differences between them.
We may give him simple and interesting exercises dealing with
the phonetics of his own language in order that he may better
understand the phonetic system of the foreign language. We
may document the student on the nature of semantics, and pro-
vide him with a simple series of exercises desired to show
him the relations between words and thoughts, and the differ-
ence between meanings and functions. He will gradually become
expert in the art of finding synonyms, and of paraphrasing
in his own language. He must be made to understand, for
instance, that the difference between because and on account of
is an ergonic or functional difference, that the difference between
I would like him to go and / wish he'd go is one of emotional
degree ; we may demonstrate that the true negative of / must
is / need not (and not / mv^t not), that the true negative of
it must be here is it can't be here, etc., etc. By interesting
exercises of this sort we shall anticipate and circumvent many
misunderstandings and difficulties.
We may also introduce the leading principles of inflexions^
derivations, and ergonics, taking our examples from, and basing
our exercises on, the student's own language. In doing so we
142 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
shall demonstrate that each language has its own characteristics,
and that we must not expect any close analogy between
languages which are not cognate.
In certain cases we shall find it profitable to instruct the
pupil in the theory of language-learning. If our examples and
exercises are judiciously chosen we may enlarge the horizon and
quicken the ideas of our student ; we may even cause him to
share our enthusiasm and create an interest in the range of
subjects treated in the present work. By so doing we shall give
the soimdest of all incentives to successful work ; an intrinsic
interest in language and language-learning in the abstract.
These indications, suggestions, and exercises may be given
either systematically or at odd moments with the intention of
breaking the monotony of the phonetic drill. The first stage
is the right moment to choose for such talks, for it is now or ■
never that we are to succeed in giving the right orientation and
by means of preventive measures to react against the vicious
tendencies to which allusion has already been made, and which
will be more fully described in Part VII.
The opening move in the ideal standard programme which
it is now our intention to outline may well consist of a first
lesson in subconscious comprehension. We suggest that this
should last from fifteen to thirty minutes.
If considered necessary, the teacher may tell the pupils to
listen and to watch, that they are not to translate what they
hear, and that under no circumstances whatever will any answer
be given to such questions as " Please, what does that mean ? "
or " Please, what's that in English ? "
It is understood that each of the sentences given in the
following specimen lesson will be accompanied by the necessary
gestures and movements.
Specimen of a First Lesson
" Regardez 1 Voila la fenetre. On appelle 5a une fenfetre.
Regardez tous ! C'est la fenetre.
" Regardez 1 Voila la porte. C'est une porte. Ce n'est
pas la fenetre. C'est une porte. Je touche la porte. J'ouvre
la porte. Je ferme la porte*
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 148
" Je vais a la fenetre. Je regarde la fengtre. Regardez
la fenetre. Je la touche. C'est une fenetre.
" Regardez la porte ! Regardez la fenetre ! Regardez le
plafond ! Qa c'est le plafond.
" Ceci n'est pas le plafond. C'est le plancher. Je regarde
le plancher. Je regarde le plafond. Je regarde la fenetre. Je
regarde la porte.
" Est-ce la porte, 5a ? Oui, c'est \& porte. Je vais a la
porte. Je I'ouvre et je la ferme.
" Void xine chaise. Ce n'est pas une fenetre. C'est une
chaise. Regardez la chaise !
" Voici la table. La table. La chaise. Je vais a la table
et je la touche. Je prends la chaise et je la mets pr^s de la table.
" Le livre. Voici le livre. On appelle §a un livre. Je mets
le livre sur la table.
" Voici ce qu'on appelle un crayon. Je prends le crayon et
je le mets sur la chaise. Regardez le crayon qui est sur la
chaise ! Regardez le livre qui est sur la table !
" Je prends une feuiUe de papier. Regardez la feuiUe de
papier ! Je vais mettre le papier sur la table. Non — je ne le
mettrai pas sur la table. Je le mettrai par terre, sur le plancher.
" La plume. Voila la plume. Je prends la plume et le
crayon. Regardez la plume et le crayon ! Je les mets sur la
chaise. VoUa !
" La porte. La fenetre. La chaise. Le crayon. Le livre.
La plume. La feuille de papier.
" Je prends maintenant un morceau de craie. Regardez la
craie ! Avec la craie j'ecris au tableau noir. Voila le tableau
noir. Regardez tous le tableau noir !
" Je mets la craie sur la table. Je ramasse le papier et je le
mets sur la table a cdte de la craie.
" Voila le mur. Je vais au mur et je le touche. Ce n'est
pas le plafond. Voila le plafond et voila le plancher. Ceci,
c'est le mur.
" II y a quatre murs ici. Un, deux, trois, quatre. Je vais
du mur a la fenStre. Je suis maintenant a la fenetre et je la
touche.
" Je prends le livre. Je I'ouvre. Je le ferme. C'est mon
144 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
livre. Je mets le livre dans ma poche. Je mets aussi le crayon
dans ma poche.
" Voici un tiroir. J'ouyre le tiroir. Je mets la feuille de
papier dans le tiroir et je le ferme.
" Un cahier. On appelle 9a un cahier. Ce n'est pas un
livre. C'est im cahier. Je prends le cahier et je le mets sur
la chaise.
" Une clef. Voici une clef. C'est ma clef. Regardez la
clef ! Je vais mettre la clef sur la table.
" La fenetre. La porta. Le plafond. Le plancher. Le
mur. La chaise. La table. Le tiroir. Le crayon. La
plume. Le papier. La craie. La clef. Le tableau noir.
" Voici une lettre. J'ai tire cette lettre de ma poche.
Regardez la lettre ! Voici I'enveloppe. Voici le timbre. Je
mets la lettre sur la table.
" On appelle ceci un encrier. Un encrier. Voici I'encrier.
II est sur la table. Je mets la plume dans I'encrier.
" Regardez cette boite-ci ! Je I'ouvre. C'est une boite.
Qu'est-ce qu'il y a dans la boite ? Regardez ! II y a de la
craie. II y a beaucoup de morceaux de craie dans la boite.
Je la mets sur la table.
" Voici encore ime boite. Je I'ai tire de ma poche. C'est
ime petite boite. Qu'est-ce qu'il y a dans cette boite-ci ? De
la craie ? Non. Des livres ? Non. Des plum.es ? Non.
" Regardez ! J'ouatc la boite et je regarde ce qu'il y a
dedans. Ce sont des allumettes. Regardez les alliunettes !
Je prends des allumettes dans la boite et je les mets sur la table.
J' en prends une, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six. Six alliunettes.
" Je vais compter. Une fenetre. Deux fenetres. Une
boite. Deux boites. Un mur, deux murs, trois murs, quatre
murs. Un livre, deux livres, trois livres, quatre livres. Une
feuille de papier, deux feuilles de papier, trois feuilles de papier,
etc., etc.
' ' Regardez maintenant ce que je vais faire. Je vais arranger
tous les objets qui sont sur la table.
" D'abord je prends le livre et je le mets ici. Le crayon ;
je le mets ici. La plume ; je la mets a c6te du crayon. La
clef ; je la mets ici. La lettre ; ici. La boite — ^avec la craie
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 145
dedans ; ici. L'autre boite, la boite a allumettes ; je la mets
ici, etc., etc.
"La feuUle de papier. Oil est-elle, la feuille de papier?
Oh est la feuille de papier ? Ah, la voici ! La voici dans le
tiroir. Voici la feuille de papier.
" Voila ! Regardez sur la table ! Regardez tous les objets !
Le livre, la craie, la plume, la clef, etc., etc.
" Maintenant je prends la lettre et je la mets dans ma poche.
Le livre ; je le mets dans le tiroir. L'encrier ; je le laisse la,
sur la table. La clef; je la mets dans ma poche, le crayon
aussi. Le cahier ; dans le tiroir.
" La boite ; je la mets dans I'armoire. Oui, I'armoire. On
appelle 5a une armoire. Ce n'est pas le tiroir. Voila le tiroir.
Voici I'armoire.
" Regardons maintenant tous les objets dont j'ai parle : la
fenetre, la porte, le mur," etc., etc.
This exercise in subconscious comprehension will probably
not occupy the whole of the period generally allotted to the
French lesson ; indeed, it would be unwise to dwell more than
from fifteen to twenty minutes on any one type of work. The
remainder of the first lesson may be devoted to other exercises
suggested in these pages. We would advise as a useful sequel
to the above talk a first lesson in conscious ear- training. This
may be given in the following way :
" While I was talking in French to you just now, you must
have heard that I was using a number of sounds that we never
use when we are speaking English. I am going to pronounce
some of these sounds to you now, and I want you to notice them
particularly. You are not to pronounce them after me at
present, but just to listen carefully. This will sharpen your
ears and make it easier for you to imitate me when we start
learning French pronunciation :
"[ii], [ii], [ei], [e:], [ei], [e:], [ax], [ai], etc., etc.
" All the sounds I have just made are used when we
speak French, and we can't speak French without making
them.
" I expect you will have noticed that some of them are just
146 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
like some English sounds. Listen again, and you will tell me
which ones you think sound like English ones :
"[ii i:]. Yes, that sounds very English, doesn't it?
That is the English vowel-sound that we make when we say see
or be.
"[e: e:]. No, that doesn't sound at all English — ^at any
rate not like the English that we speak in this part of the country.
If you went to Scotland you would probably hear people there
using the sound [ei] when they speak English,
" [e: s:]. Yes, something like the vowel in the word pen,
isn't it ? It's really more like a sound you hear when I say
fair or Mary. Listen again :
" [a: a:]. Have you ever heard that in English ? As in
the word up ? Yes, very much like the vowel in up or cut,
especially as we pronounce such words here in the south of
England."
If the lesson is given in the north of England the French
sounds will be compared with those of the local pronunciation,
[e:] will be compared with the a of take (in some parts of York-
shire), [a] with the vowel of cat (north of England), etc.
The Second Lesson
This, as before, may start by a period devoted to an exercise
in subconscious comprehension. It may be the repetition of
the one given the day before, or may be a modified form of it,
with the addition of a few new words and forms.
The second part of the lesson may be the continuation of the
exercise in ear-practice. We may now say :
" I am now going to read to you some lists of French words.
In a few days' time you will have to repeat these words after
me and pronounce them just as I do, so I want you to listen
very carefully :
" Lit, qui, si, oui, pris, mis, fils, guide, livre, cerise, etc.
" Clef, chez, nez, bl^, secouer, jouer, lier, etc.
" Belle, sec, sept, elle, laine, aide, mSme, pret, mais, fouet, etc.
" Bal, mal, place, chaque, salle, drap, moi, voix, cage, etc.
" Classe, phrase, age, tasse, pas, mois, etc.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 147
" Bonne, donne, note, mode, noble, etc.
" Chaud, veau, faute, cause, rose, chose, autre," etc.
And so on for other French sounds.
The Third Lesson
This will continue the series of exercises in subconscious
comprehension. We suggest the following outline :
" Regardez la craie. EUe est blanche. Le papier est blanc.
Le plafond est blanc. Est-ce que la craie est blanche ? Oui, elle
est blanche. Est-ce que le plafond est blanc ? Oui, il est blanc.
" Le tableau est noir. L'encre est noire. VoUa encore quel-
que chose qui est noir. Le tableau n'est pas blanc. II est noir.
" Le livre est grand. C'est im grand livre. L'armoire est
grande. Ce livre-ci n'est pas grand. II est petit. Etc., etc.
" Est-ce que ce crayon-ci est long ou court ? II est long. La
craie n'est pas longue. Ce morceau de craie est court. Voici
deux crayons. L'un est court. L'autre est long. Je mets le
crayon long sur la table et le crayon court sur la chaise. Etc.
" Le plafond est haut. La chaise n'est pas haute. Elle est
basse. . . .
" Je prends lie livre. Jeletiens. Je le regarde. Jejl'ouvre.
Je le ferme. Je le mets dans le tiroir.
" Je prends une feuille de papier. Je la regarde. Je la
tiens. Je la touche. Je la dechire.
" Je prends mon canif. Je I'ouvre. Je prends ime allumette
et je la coupe avec mon c^nif. Avec mon canif je coupe ,
I'allumette. Je coupe le papier. Je coupe la craie. . . .
" Je mets le papier sur la table. Je mets un livre sur le
papier. Je mets une boite sui le livre. Je mets le crayon sur
la boite.
" Je mets la chaise pr^s de la fenetre. Je mets l'autre chaise
pres de la porte.
" Je vais k la porte. Je vais a la fenetre. Je vais au pupitre.
Je vais au mur. Je reviens k ma place.
" Je m'assieds. Je me l^ve. Je marche. Je m'arrSte. Je
retoume a ma place. Je m'assieds.
148 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
" Je regarde la fenetre. Je regarde le plafond. (Le plafond
est blanc.) Je regarde le tableau. (Le tableau est noir.)
" Je prends le livre. (Le livre est grand.) Je le mets sur la
chaise. (La chaise est basse.)
" Oh est le livre ? II est sur la table. Et le crayon ? II est
sur la chaise. Et le papier, oh. est-U ? II est par terre.
" Oil est la fenetre ? Voila la fenetre. Ou est la porte ?
Voil^ la porte. La porte est la. Oh est le plafond ? Voila le
plafond.
" Oh est le livre ? Voici le livre. Et le crayon ? Le voila.
Et la plume ? La voila.
" Comment est la craie ? EUe est blanche. Conmient est
le plafond ? II est blanc.
'' Combien de livres y a-t-il ici ? II y en a deux ; le livre
bleu et le livre rouge.
" Combien y a-t-il de chaises ? II y en a trois. U y en a
une prte de la porte. II y en a une autre pr^s de la fenetre,
et I'autre est ici, pr^s de moi." Etc., etc.
Ear-practice may be continued on the same lines as before,
and we may now introduce easy articulation exercises.
Specimen First Lesson in Articulation
" All pronounce after me the sound [a:].
[The pupils do so.J
"Yes, very good; but I want to hear it pronoimced more
steadily and with more force. Try again, and make the sound
last until I raise my hand.
[The pupils produce a long [a:], lasting from two to four
seconds.]
"Now [addressing individual pupils] see whether you can
produce a nice [a:].
[Various pupils do so.J
" Yes, that's very good. When I want you to pronounce that
sound I shall write this letter on the blackboard : [a]. If I
put two dots beside it, [a:], that will mean that you must make
it long."
[The symbol will remain on the blackboard.]
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 149
Sounds such as [i:], [u:], [ae:], [a:], [v], [z], [3], [H etc.,
will be treated in the same way.
The pupils must now come to realize that the English [ai],
[ei], etc., are not pure vowels, and that [tj] and [d3] are not
simple consonants.
" Now pronounce [ai].
[The pupils do so.]
" Make the soimd last as long as I hold up my hand."
Result, three seconds of [a] and three seconds of [i]. We
call the attention of the pupils to that fact, and make repeated
trials in order to demonstrate the point clearly.
A ' narrow ' transcription of the English sounds is to be
recommended. This may seem a strange procedure, but it
is nevertheless a sound one, resulting in clearer and quicker
comprehension.
English 00 in good must be indicated by [u] ; the vowel in bit
should be written [i] ; similarly the vowel in pen should be
[e] and the English r should be [a].
If we adopted the conventional simplifications generally used
in teaching English to foreigners ([u] for [u], [i] for [i], etc.),
we should deprive ourselves of a valuable means of demon-
strating some of the essential differences between English and
French vowels.
All phoneticians will probably agree that a broad transcrip-
tion is stifficient when examining the soiuids of any one language,
but that a narrow transcription becomes desirable when com-
paring the sounds of two or more languages.
At a subsequent moment, when a pupil pronounces the
English vowel in bit instead of the French vowel in si, we may
write the two vowels [i] and [i] on the blackboard and point
out that the former was pronounced instead of the latter. If,
on the other hand, the pupil unduly lengthens the French vowel
in si, we shall write the two forms [i:] and [i], and call the
pupil's attention to the fact that the latter is required and not
the former.
Without a narrow transcription there will always be a certain
confusion between [i], [i], and [i:] ; between [u], [u], and [u:] ;
between [a], [r], and [r], etc.
150 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
The Foueth Lesson
Exercises in Subconscious Comprehension
These will continue on the lines suggested in the preceding
pages, the vocabxilary gradually becoming more extensive.
The teacher will perform such actions as dropping, picking up,
breaking, raising, pushing, pulling, rubbing, scratching, writing,
rubbing out, etc., etc. He will speak of the relative positions
of various objects (" Le crayon est sur la boite, sous la boite,
devant la boite. La chaise est entre la porte et la fenetre,"
etc.), and will introduce possessives and similar modifying units.
Ear-training Exercises
These may now include the passive audition of polysyllabic
words grouped according to their phonetic structure :
Allez, prenez, lisez, icrivez, donnez.
Honneur, couleur, odeur, valeur, vapeur, moteur.
Final, royal, journal, moral, spicial.
Humain, africain, marin, musiden.
Heureux, joyeux, prideux, vicieux.
Actif, passif, tardif, nigatif. Etc., etc.
Articulation Exercises
As before.
Imperative Drill
This new type of exercise may now be introduced. Although
it is similar to the exercise in subconscious comprehension, the
object in view is not the same, nor wUl the pupils maintain their
attitude of purely passive receptivity. The teacher will issue
commands in French to be carried out by the class as a whole,
or by individual pupils. Needless to say, each one of the orders
will be accompanied in the first instance by appropriate gestures.
" Regardez le plafond 1 Regardez la fenStre ! Regardez la
porte ! Regardez moi ! etc.
" Prenez votre livre ! Ouvrez votre livre ! Lisez votre
livre ! Fermez votre livre ! Levez votre livre ! Mettez votre
livre sur le pupitre ! etc.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 151
" Prenez votre crayon ! Levez votre crayon I Regardez
votre crayon 1 Laissez tomber votre crayon I Ramassez
votre crayon I Mettez votre crayon dans votre poche I etc.
" Levez la main gauche 1 Levez la main droite ! Baissez
la main gauche 1 Baissez la main droite ! Baissez les yeux !
Levez les yeux 1 Fermez les yeux ! Ouvrez les yeux 1 Ouvrez
la bouche ! Fermez la bouche ! etc.
" Retoumez-vous 1 Regardez-moi ! etc.
" Touchez votre banc 1 Touchez votre pupitre. Touchez
le plancher I Touchez votre livre 1 Touchez votre tSte 1 etc.
" Frottez-vous les mains 1 Battez des mains ! Prenez votre
crayon 1 Toumez votre crayon ! Frottez votre crayon !
Poussez votre pupitre 1 Tirez votre pupitre ! Penchez-vous
du c6t^ gauche 1 Penchez-vous du c6t6 droit ! etc.
" Levez- vous I Sortez de votre banc ! AUez k la porte 1
Allez h la fenetre ! Allez k la table ! AUez au mur ! AUez
k I'annoire ! Retoumez k votre place ! Asseyez-vous 1 " etc.
Fifth and Sixth Les30ns
These may be devoted to a general recapitulation of all the
exercises previously described.
Seventh and Eighth Lessons
Exercises in Subconscious Comprehension
The teacher will continue these daily talks on the same lines
as before. He may speak of the parts of the body, articles
of clothing, and the substances of which various objects are
composed.
Ear-training Exercises
Longer words may be introduced, such as :
Instructif, interrogatif, diterminatif.
Civilization, conversation, explication, proposition, traduc-
tion.
Comparaison, combinaison, conjugaison, diclinaison.
Ima^nable, inSmtable, deplorable, incapable, improbable.
Im^ossibiliU, difficult^, sensibility.
152 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Articulation Exercises
As before.
When the pupils have learnt to isolate and to prodnce with
ease the sounds they know, and can read and write the isolated
symbols representing them, the foreign sounds are introduced
one by one.
"Pronounce [i:].
[The pupils do so.]
" Are your lips rounded and bunched up, or are the comers
wide apart ?
[The pupils note that they are wide.]
" Pronounce [i:] with the lips rounded and bunched together,
like this.
[The pupils do so more or less successfully,]
" We must try that again. Be sure that it is really [i:] that
you are pronouncing, and be sure that your lips are rounded
just as if you were going to whistle.
[A more successful [y:] is the result.]
" Now, does that appear to be an English sound ? Do you
use [y] when you are speaking English ? No, of course you
don't ; it isn't an English sound ; it's a sound that French boys
and girls use when they speak their own language. Let us do
it again. Now then, all together : [y:].
" When I want you to pronounce this sound, I shall write on
the blackboard the letter [y]. We shall not call it y (pronoimced
[wai]), but the letter [y].
Now I am going to pronounce a strange soimd to you. It
doesn't exist in English, or at any rate in this part of England ;
it is a sound that you have probably never heard before.
Listen : [e:]. Do you think that you can make that sound ?
[e:]. Look at the shape of my lips when I pronounce it :
[e:]. See whether you can make a noise like that.
[The pupils are more or less unsuccessful.]
" No, no, that won't do at all ; you are pronoimcing quite a
different sound. Listen again : [ei], [ei], [e:]. Don't you hear
what a shrill, squeaking sort of soimd it is ? Try again ; make
it shriller and more squeaky.
[The result is better.]
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 153
" Yes, that is better, but it is not squeaky enough. Some
of you are not screwing back the comers of your lips enough.
Draw back your chins and squeeze the sound, [ei], [e:].
" Look at my hand [which is hanging limply] ; it is in what
we call a limp or lax position. Look at it again and notice the
difference ; all the muscles are taut and strained, and the skin
is stretched tight over the back of it ; my hand is in a strained
or tense position. Now when I pronoimce an English [e] (as
in pen), the muscles of my mouth, chin, and tongue are as limp
as my hand is now. But when I pronoimce the sound [ei]
they are all strained and tense, just as my hand is now. Try
again : tighten the muscles of your tongue and chin ; feel as if
you were just goiag to put out your tongue ; now then : [e:]."
In this manner each of the foreign sounds will be inculcated.
The representation of the vowels on the triangle will serve to
give an identity to each of them.
' Imperative Drill
As before, but with fewer gestures.
Phonelip Reading
The teacher will write a series of phonetic characters on the
blackboard, and require the pupils (collectively or individually)
to read them aloud. In the first instance these should represent
native soimds.
Ninth to Twentieth Lessons
Subconscious Comprehension
The teacher will use the various simpler forms of exercise
that he has prepared in advance. He must judge from the
general attitude of the pupils whether the matter given is too
difficult or the contrary.
Ear-training Exercises
As before.
Articulation Exercises
The next exercises will be to produce combinations of
a given vowel with consonants : [iip], [i:b], [i:t], [iid].
154 STUDY AND TEACfflNG OF LANGUAGES
[i:k], [i:g], etc. ; [pi:], [bi:], etc. ; [pi:p], [piib], etc., and so on
with each of the French vowels.
Dictation Exercises
The pupils should now be initiated into the art of writing
phonetically to dictation. The first exercises will consist of
monosyllabic words; these will be succeeded by others con-
taining words (actual or artificial) of two and three syllables.
When a certain proficiency has been attained, these phonetic
exercises will gradually merge into exercises calculated to
quicken the pupils' faculties of auditive perception and rq)ro-
duction, Whole sentences may be repeated several times by
the teacher, and will be reproduced by the pupils in chorus and
individually. The sentences chosen will be the models forming
part of the microcosm.
Imperative Drill
As before, but with still fewer gestures.
Phonetic Reading and Dictation
The first exercises in phonetic reading can now be attempted ;
the pupils will articulate isolated sounds written by the teacher
on the blackboard.
Comparisons should constantly be made between the English
and the French soimds generally liable to be confused.
"Pronounce the sound I have just written on the black-
board : [e]. Now the one I have written beside it : [e].
Now the English [ei], [e], [e] ; [e, e, ei], [e, ei], [ei, e].
"Pronounce the r in red [jjjj]. Now the French r [rrrr].
Again. Again. Now [airrr], [iirrr], [eirrr] ; [rrra:], [rrri:],
[rrrez]. Now [jjua]," etc., etc.
This exercise is varied by phonetic dictation. It wiU con-
sist of pronouncing various sounds, each of which is to be
written by the pupils in phonetic characters.
Obviously the teacher alone can decide at what rate the
progranome is to be developed. With bright and responsive
pupils a new stage will soon be reached ; in the contrary case it
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 155
will be necessary more than once to recapitulate everything
from the very start.
We will therefore content ourselves with indicating briefly
in what directions the various exercises that we have suggested
may be expanded, and what new ones may be introduced during
what we have designated as the first or elementary period.
Exercises in Subconscious Comprehension
At about the twentieth lesson the transition from concrete
to the abstract may begin. It may be initiated somewhat in
the following way :
" Je touche la table. Je touche le plancher. Je touehe le
mur, Je touche le plafond — Non 1 Je ne touche pas le
plafond. Je ne peux pas toucher le plafond. C'est im-
possible, II m'est impossible de toucher le plafond. Le
plancher ; oui, je peux toucher le plancher ; ce n'est pas diffi-
cile. Vous pouvez toucher le plancher, n'est-ce pas ? Ce n'est
pas difficile de toucher le plancher ou le mur. Mais vous ne
pouvez pas toucher le plafond.
" Si je reste ici, k ma place, je ne peux pas toucher la porte ni
la fenStre. II m'est impossible de toucher la porte si je reste
ici. Vous ne pouvez pas toucher la porte si vous restez Ik oil
vous gtes,
" Je soul^ve la chaise. Je soul^ve I'armoire — ^Non ! je ne
peux pas soulever I'armoire, la chose est impossible.
" Je regarde le plafond. Je regarde la fenfitre. Si je mets
la main devant las yeux, ou si je ferme les yeux, je ne peux pas
regarder le plafond ; je ne peux pas regarder la fengtre.
*' Donnez-moi votre crayon 1 Donnez-moivotreplumel [The
teacher takes them away from the pupil. J Maintenant ^crivez I
Vous ne pouvez pas ^crire. II vous est impossible d'^crire.
" Je n'ai pas de craie. Je ne peux pas 6crire au tableau,
Puis-je ^crire avec le doigt ? Non, n'est-ce pas ? Puis-je
6crire avec le livre ? Non, n'est-ce pas ?
" Je n'ai pas de Uvre ; je ne peux pas lire. Je ferme les
oreilles ; je ne peux pas entendre. Je ferme les yeux ; je ne
peux pas voir.
156 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
" Je ne peux pas toucher le plafond. Pourquoi ? Parce
qu'il est trop haut. Je ne peux pas toucher la porte. Pour-
quoi ? Parce qu'elle est trop loin. Je ne peux pas soulever
I'armoire. Pourquoi ? Parce qu'elle est trop lourde. Je ne
peux pas ecrire au tableau. Pourquoi ? Parce que je n'ai
pas de craie.
" Pourquoi ne pouvez-vous pas ecrire ? Parce que vous
n'avez pas de crayon. Pourquoi est-ce que je ne peux pas voir ?
Parce que j'ai les yeux ferm^s. Pourquoi est-ce que je ne peux
pas entendre ? Parce que j'ai les oreilles fermees.
" Si je n'ai pas de craie, je ne peux pas ecrire au tableau. Si
je n'ai pas de livre, je ne peux pas lire. Si je n'ai pas de clef, je
ne peux pas fermer la porte. Si vous n'avez pas de crayon,
vous ne pouvez pas ecrire. Etc., etc.
" Sans livre il est impossible de lire. Sans crayon ou plume
il est impossible d'ecrire. Sans clef il est impossible d'ouvrir la
porte. Etc., etc.
" Si je veux ecrire, il faut que je prenne une plume. Si je
veux lire, il faut que je prenne im livre ou un journal. Etc., etc.
" Je ne peux pas toucher la porte sans y aller. Je ne peux
pas Ecrire sans prendre im crayon ou une plume." Etc., etc.
At about the same period the following talk will probably be
fairly well understood :
" Nous sommes ici dans la classe, vous et moi. Nous
sommes dans V6cole. La classe est dans I'ecole. Nous
sommes ici pour parler frangais. Je parle frangais. Je vous
parle en frangais et vous ecoutez ce que je vous dis. Nous
sommes ici dans la classe ; la classe est dans I'ecole. L'ecole
est a Londres. Nous sommes k Londres. Londres est une
ville. Manchester aussi est une ville ; Birmingham est ime ville ;
Liverpool est une ville. Nous ne sommes pas a Manchester ;
nous ne sommes pas a Birmingham ; nous sonunes a Londres.
Est-ce que Londres est une ville ? Oui, Londres est une ville.
Est-ce que Londres est une ^cole ? Non, Londres n'est pas une
6cole ; Londres est une ville, ime grande ville, une tr^s grande
ville. La classe est-elle grande ? Oui, elle est grande, n'est-ce
pas ? La ville de Londres est-elle grande ? Oui, n'est-ce pas ?
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 167
" Londres est la capitale de I'Angleterre. Ce n'est pas
la capitale de la France. Londres est une ville anglaise.
La capitale de la France est Paris. Paris est une ville
fran§aise. Paris aussi est une grande ville. Nous ne sonmies
pas a Paris ; nous sommes k Londres. Londres est en
Angleterre. Nous sommes en Angleterre. Vous €tes en
Angleterre ; moi, je suis en Angleterre ; nous sommes tous
en Angleterre.
" Vous etes anglais ; vous n'etes pas frangais. Vous parlez
anglais, e'est votre langue. Les Fran§ais ne parlent pas
anglais ; ils parlent fran9ais. Les Anglais ne parlent pas fran-
§ais ; ils parlent anglais. Les Italiens parlent italien. Etes-
vous italiens ? Non, n'est-ce pas ? Vous etes anglais. Etes-
vous fran9ais ? Non, n'est-ce pas ? Vous etes anglais. Vous
parlez anglais, vous ne parlez pas frangais.
" Londres est tine ville ; Paris est une ville. L' Angleterre
est un pays. La France aussi est un pays. L'ltalie encore,
c'est un pays. La Belgique est im. pays. Le Portugal est un
pays. L' Angleterre est-elle un pays ou une ville ? Un pays,
n'est-ce pas ? Londres est-il un pays ou une vUle ? Une
ville, n'est-ce pas ? Nous sommes ici a Londres ; nous
sommes en Angleterre; nous sommes dans la capitale de
FAngleterre." Etc., etc.
J
Imperative Drill
The direct imperative may now be replaced or alternated
with various indirect forms such as :
" Voulez-vous venir ici ? Je vous demande de venir ici.
II faut venir ici. Vous devez venir ici. Faites-moi le plaisir
de venir ici. Je vous dis de venir ici. fa ne vous ferait-U
rien de venir ici ? "
The conunands may now embrace actions of a more precise
nature and more difficult of illustration by gesture :
" Donnez votre livre a X !
" Apportez-moi cinq morceaux de papier !
" AHez h. la fenStre sans faire de bruit !
" Voulez-vous venir ici, prendre mon livre et mon crayon, et
les donner a I'eleve qui est derri^re vous ?
158 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
" II faut venir ici, prendre la craie et puis ecrire un mot
anglais au tableau noir."
Articulation and Ear-training Exercises
These may now be combined with phonetic reading and dicta-
tion, the whole set to be considered as General Phonetic Exercises.
There will be a daily drill embracing one or more forms of
these types of work, passing from isolated sounds to syllables,
and from these to longer units.
Two forms of ear-training exercises may be recommended ;
both of these, devised by Mr Daniel Jones, Reader in Phonetics
at University College, London, have been used in his classes
with conspicuous success.
The first of these consists of writing on the blackboard a
series of numbered phonetic symbols :
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 etc.
ieeaoDouy^ oe a
The teacher enunciates these sounds in a mixed order, and as
he does so the pupil or pupils respond by quoting the nvunber
of the symbol representing the sound which they hear, or imagine
they hear. For instance :
Teacher, [eeee].
Pupil. No. 8 ?
Teacher. Right. Now : [oooo].
Pupil. No. 7 ?
Teacher. Quite right. Now : [fiji^].
Pupil. No. 9 ?
Teacher. Listen again : [0fi0].
Pupil. No. 10 !
Teacher. Yes, No. 10. Listen to the difference between
No. 9 and No. 10 : [y, fi, y, jzf, y, jzi]. Etc., etc.
The second exercise, named Nonsense XHctation, consists of
dictating artificial and meaningless words composed in advance
by the teacher, such as : [ytvslje, s^vezod, ikme3ruS].
These words must be written phonetically by the pupils.
When they make mistakes, the teacher should repeat the word
with the right and the wrong sound alternately so that the
difference may be clearly audible.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 159
Fluency Practice
This is the natural devdopment of articulation exercises
when carried into a later stage. When the pupils have become
fairly proficient in the production of isolated sounds and
syllables, they may go one step farther and practise groups of
connected syllables. These may be nonsense sentences or real
sentences ; but as no particular end is to be gained by the
former, we may prepare a number of real sentences and proceed
to work on these.
Although nominally a type of phonetic exercise, a secondary
purpose will be well served by this fluency drill : the daily
repetition of a niunber of sentences will result in their being
memorized. If the sentences are well chosen the pupils will
acquire, during their phonetic lessons, a considerable stock of
useful vocabulary in the form of complete ergons.
We need hardly point out the direct and indirect advantages
of learning by heart a number of characteristic sentences. Not
only wiU such sentences form the nucleus of their stock of
primary matter, but each of them will serve at a later stage as
the models from which they will derive an almost unlimited
quantity of secondary matter.
Teacher. Listen to what I am going to say : [sanpjzipavni:
risidme].
The pupils repeat, but with indifferent success. We may
help them by isolating portions of the sentence : [ni:risi],
[niirisi], [niirisid], [niirisid], [isidme], [isidme], [ganpj^pa],
[sanpjzJpa].
Then Avith better success the pupils produce : [gsnpjzfpavni:
risidme].
The imit is then dictated, written on the blackboard, and
read, and the next sentence is taken.
Let us bear in mind that, with the exception of the articula-
tion and fluency exercises, the first or elementary stage is
not concerned with the active aspect of language-study. We
are acting in accordance with the principle that no active
work is profitable until the pupil has mastered the sounds
160 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
of the language, and can produce them with fluency and
accuracy.
Now even under the most favomrable circumstances we
cannot expect an average class of average pupils to acquire
anything like accuracy or fluency in sound-production under at
least a term. To allow or to force pupils to answer questions
(or indeed to make any active oral use of French) before they
are proficient in the production of the very basis of spoken
language is to expose them to all the dangers which inevitably
result from premature efforts. We cannot and must not allow
our pupils to speak broken or ' pidgin ' French ; our ideal
standard programme is based on the principle oi fluent accuracy
or nothing.
From the outset, then, we must be prepared to let at least
'three months pass before we can risk any other active oral work,
on the part of our pupils, than articulation exercises. The
object of these pages is to show what varied forms of useful
exercises we may employ while awaiting the moment at which
the pupils may be considered ripe for their entry on the second
or intermediate stage.
For obvious reasons we have suggested no form of written
work beyond the tracing of phonetic characters ; however long
we may have to wait ere we can risk active oral work, this active
oral work must precede any written work.
The teacher will probably find that the various types of
exercises that we have suggested will more than occupy the
incubatory three months. Should this, however, not be the
ease, we would suggest a series of simple lessons (or periods of
fifteen minutes) to be devoted to the teaching of the more
important principles of language-theory. There is no reason
why we should not take advantage of oiu- three months' wait
by giving simple lectures to our pupils on the theories of
phonetics, ergonics, etjonology, and semantics. These lectmres,
needless to say, will be given in and based on the pupils' native
language and adapted to their standard of intelligence.
In the following pages we will see what sort of lectures it is
possible to give to pupils of the age of eleven or twelve by
giving a few typical specimens.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 161
Phonetic Theory
Specimen Lesson
" Pronounce [mmm] and then tell me what happens to your
lips. . . .
" Well, what happened ? You closed them ? Yes, you
certainly closed them. Try and find out what other sounds
are made by closing or by nearly closing your lips.
PPhe pupils discover [p], [b], and [w]].
" Very well, let us write these four soimds on the blackboard,
and call them the lip-lip sounds; that means that one lip
touches the other.
Lip-lip Sounds
P b
m
w
" Do your two lips come together when you pronounce [vvv] ?
No ? What does happen then ? . . . Yes, that's right, the
bottom 1^ is pressed against the upper teeth. This we shall call
a lip-teeth sound. Can you find any more lip-teeth soimds ? "
[[f] is duly discovered.]
" Very well, let us put [f] and [v] together and call them the
lip-teeth sounds.
Lip-lip Sounds
P b
m
w
Lip-teeth Sounds
fv
"Now try and find out what parts of the mouth have to
touch in order to make other sounds.
[Various soimds are discovered and are duly displayed under
their appropriate headings: teeth-edge and tongue-tip sounds
[6, S], ridge and tongue-tip sounds [s, z, J, 3, J, !]> etc., etc.]
"Do you make a sort of explosion when you pronounce
[s s s] ? No ? Can you find out some sounds which do make
an explosion? [b] ? Yes, [b] is an explosive sound. Any
162 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
more ? g [dgii] ? What do you mean by [d3i:] ? Do you mean
[ds] or [g] ? Ah, [g] ; I thought you meant that. In future
you must say [g], not [d^h], when you mean [g], or I shall not
know whether you mean [g] or [ds]."
The plosives or explosion sounds are written in a row on the
blackboard :
Plosives or
explosion sounds
t d kg
The nasals, fricatives, and laterals are discovered and treated
in the same manner. Subsequently, the vowels and diphthongs
receive similar treatment.
A large diagram may be constructed progressively and hung
up for reference.
A few minutes of phonetic reading and dictation will be
very useful at this period. Of particular interest will be the
names of the pupils written in phonetic script. Each pupil
may subsequently be asked to write his address in phonetic
characters.
Short talks on phonetics will be welcomed by the average
pupU.
" Some people do not know the difference between a letter
and a sound. And yet there is a great difference between the
two things, isn't there ? A sound is something we make with
our mouth, a letter is something that we write.
" In English, French, and other languages the ordinary
spelling of words with the letters of the alphabet doesn't agree
at all with the pronimciation of the words. The word one is '
made up of the letters called [ou,] [en], and [ii], but we do not
pronounce it [oueni:], we pronounce it [wah]. How many
sounds are there in one ? Which is the first ? The second ?
And the third?
" How many sounds are there in [foit] ? Yes, three soimds ;
let us write them in phonetic symbols on the blackboard. . . .
Now each of you write the word in ordinary spelling with the
letters of the alphabet. . . . Why, how is this ? Some of you
have written fort and others fought. What is the reason ? . . .
AN roEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 163
Yes, just so, sometimes two different words are pronomiced in
exactly the same way, but are written in different ways. That
never happens in phonetic writing. The phonetic symbols
never shift about like letters ; each one always represents a
fixed sound, and always the same sotmd." And so on, ad lib.
It will be noted that this is not a French lesson at all, but
an English lesson. It is intended that this should be so ;
we are engaged in sharpening our tools, labelling the bottles,
tidying up the workshop, and all the other preliminary work
which alone will make our future work rapid and effective.
Etymological Theory
Specimen Lesson
" / give, you give, he give, we g^ve, you give, they give. Is there
anything wrong in what I said ? Did it sound right ? What
was wrong with it ? . . . Oh, I [should have said he gives, in-
stead of he give. That evidently means that a word like give
sometimes has to change its form. See if you can tell me any
other ways to change the word give.
" Gave ? Yes, gave. Giving ? Yes, giving. Given ? Yes,
given. Any more ? Giveth ? Yes, there is giveth, and givest
too, but as this is not the English we use every day we will take
no notice of these old-fashioned forms. Let us write on the
blackboard the five words in this order :
1. give
2. gives
3. gave
4. giving
5. given
"Let us see whether the word stay changes in the same
manner. . . . There appear to be only four different forms this
time ; numbers 1, 2, 3, and 4. Where has number 5 got
to ? . . . Yes, that is right ; number 5 is stayed, just like
number 3.
[Other examples to be treated in the same way.]
" These five forms are called inflewions. Let us see whether
we can find any inflexions for the word under. . . .
164 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
" No, we have not been able to find any. Under is a word
which cannot be inflected. Let us try the word myuse. . . .
Mice ? Yes, mice. Any more ? Mouse's ? Yes, I think we
can put down mmise's, although some people say that the
apostrophe and the s are really a separate word and not part of
the word mouse. We see, then, that the word mouse has three
inflexions : mouse, mice, and mouse's.
" In French, Latin, Russian, and other languages there are
far more inflexions to be found than in English. A little later
on we shall make collections of French inflexions and arrange
them just as we arrange collections of foreign stamps in our
albums."
And so on.
Semantic Theory
Specimen Lesson
" When I say / am going to get my hat, what does the word get
mean ? . . . Yes, it means fetch. We see, then, that some-
times there are two ways of putting a thought into words.
What word can we use instead of nearly ? . . . Yes, we can use
almost. What word can we use instead of intend in the sentence
/ intend to got . . . No, we cannot use expect, because that
changes the meaning of the sentence ; intend and expect stand
for two very different thoughts. . . . Mean ? Yes, mean will
do very well to replace intend ; in fact, we far more often say
/ mean to go than / intend to go.
" Two words which mean the same thing, or very nearly the
same thing, are called synonjrms. Can you give me a synonym
for scarcely ? . . . For sure 1 . . . For glad ?
" What can we put in the place of the word/ar in the sentence
Is it far from here? Yes, that's right : a long way. So you see
we can sometimes replace a single word by two or three words.
Far is what we call a monolog or single word ; a long way is what
we call a polylog or group-word. Can you give me a polylog as
a synonym of the monolog enter ? Yes, go in. Yes, come in.
Yes, walk in. You will find quite a lot of polylog synonyms of
enter.
[Further examples to be given.]
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 165
" Now, we not only find monologs which are the synonjmis
of other monologs, and polylogs as synonyms of monologs, but
we also find polylogs as synonyms of other polylogs. What can
we say instead of Will you gol . . . Yes, we can say Would
you mind going ? What can we say instead of all right ? . . .
Yes, we can say very well.
[Further examples to be given.]
" Now, we saw that in / am going to get my hat the word get
may be replaced by fetch without changing the meaning of the
sentence. Can we always replace get by fetch ? Can we say.
It is fetching dark instead of It is getting dark ? . . . No, of
course we can't. Only one sort of get can be replaced by fetch.
What does get mean in the sentence. It is getting dark ? Yes, it
means growing or becoming ; this sort of get is a synonym of
grow and of become.
" We see, then, that get number 1 and get number 2 are just
as much different words as fetch and become.
" Have you ever thought how many gets there are ? We
have just examined two.
1. Get in the sense of fetch.
2. Get in the sense of grow or become.
" What others can we find ? Yes, there is :
3. Get forming part of the polylog get to in the sense of
arrive at or reach.
4. Get in the sense of persuade {Get him to come).
5. Get in the sense of cause to be {Get it mended).
6. Get in the sense of make {Get it ready).
7. Get in the sense of receive {I got a letter this morning).
" These seven words are called the semantic varieties of get.
[The semantic varieties of other words, such as keep, care,
mind, mean, etc., etc., to be examined in the same way.]
" In French and in all other languages we find exactly the
same thing ; we find synonyms (two or more words having the
same meaning) and semantic varieties of words. We shall have
to pay great attention to these and be very careful not to inix
them up.
"We have seen that some thoughts can be expressed in
166 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
English by two or more different words. We must not expect
to find that exactly those same thoughts can be expressed in
French by two different words. In English we can say nearly
or almost, but in French there is only one word instead of two.
Then we shall sometimes find two different French words to
express one thought where in English we only have one word
for it.
"We have seen that get and other English words have a
number of semantic varieties, but we must not expect to find
exactly the same words in French having exactly the same
number and the same sort of semantic varieties.
" We shall sometimes translate from French into English, and
from English into French, but we shall discover that one French
word may be expressed in a number of different ways in English,
according to its meaning. We shall also see that the meaning
of one English word may be expressed in a number of different
ways in French, and that we shall have to choose the one which
has the same meaning as the English one. We shall sometimes
have to turn English polylogs into French monologs, or do the
contrary, and turn English monologs into French polylogs.
" Some children (and even grown-up people) think that for
each English word there is a French word, with just the same
meanings and just the same number of meanings. Those
people, not knowing any better, sometimes ask very funny
questions. They say, for instance, ' What's the French for
get ? ' Of course we can't answer questions like these. We
first have to ask which sort of get they mean ; whether it is get
number 1, or get number 2, or get number 3, and so on. Then
we shall tell them how the French express that particular
thought that is expressed in English by that particular sort of
get."
Ergonic Theory
Specimen Lesson
" If somebody asked us the question ' When did you last
write a letter to your uncle ? ' what different answers should
we all give ? Let us see what some of the answers would be.
Each of you write down an answer to the question. Perhaps
AN roEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 167
some of you haven't any uncles, and if you have, perhaps you
never write to them, so those pupils need only write what they
think some of the others are writing. . . .
" Yes, just as I thought ; there are hardly any two pupils
who have written the same thing. You have all started by
saying, ' I wrote to him ' and then each one seems to have
written something different. I will write on the blackboard
some of the answers :
/ wrote to him yesterday,
on Sunday,
this morning,
three weeks ago.
during the holidays,
last week,
in January,
at Christmas,
when it was his birthday,
last month,
on the L7th of July,
a long time ago.
" Now there is something the, same about ^11 the words that
come after him. What is it that is the same? What do you
say ? . . . That they all tell us when somebody wrote to his
uncle ? Very well, and what do you say ? . . . That they all
answer the question when. Very well, and what do you say ?
That they are all different ways of saying then ?
" Yes, they are all answers to the question when. Now, we
must find a name to give to all the different ways of answering
the question when. We will call them complements of time. If
each of them were like the word yesterday, and contained one
word only, we could call them adverbs of time, but an adverb
is always a monolog or single word, and these are nearly all
polylogs.
" Now, if a complement of time answers the question when,
what question do you imagine we can answer with complements of
place ? . . . Yes, quite right ; the question where. Now, each of
you write an answer to the question : ' Where did you see it ? '"
168 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
[In the same way treat complements of duration, frequency,
manner, etc.]
Similar exercises can be given on other forms of complements,
as well as on subjectives, predicates, and modifiers. In this
manner clear notions will be inculcated concerning the chief
ergonic categories and their names.
Section 23.— The second or intermediate stage, of the duration of
from one to three years (according to the radius of the microcosm),
will consist of :
(a) More advanced exercises in subconscious comprehen-
sion.
(h) Articulation and fluency exercises.
(c) The assimilation of primary matter by means of various
catemzing devices.
(d) The production of secondary matter by means of a
large number of varied exercises based on etymology,
semantics, and ergonics.
. During this stage the traditional spelling will be intro-
duced and taught by means of various types of orthoepic
exercises.
The second or intermediate stage is the beginning of what
most people would term the study proper of the language.
It will commence when the student is able to reproduce with
ease the sounds of the language, not only as isolated elements,
but in groups of varying lengths, and is able to transform with
tolerable accuracy the symbols into sounds and the sounds into
symbols.
Although this stage may be of indefinite duration, we would
suggest that it should not be unduly prolonged nor brought to
a premature conclusion. As in the case of the first stage, its
duration is not to be measured by days, nor even by the number
of lessons devoted to it ; it should begin when the pupil is ripe
to begin it, and should terminate only when the pupil is ripe for
the next stage.
At what moment will the pupil be considered ripe for the third
stage ? Bearing in mind the end we have in view and the broad
principles of the differentiated programme, we may answer
that the third stage may begin and the second stage terminate
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 169
when the efforts of the student have enabled him to understand
the greater part of what he hears and reads, and to use in a
simple manner and with a relative freedom from error by the
oral and written mediums, about 75 per cent, of the matter con-
tained in the ordinary everyday speech of the average person.
The essential difference between the second and third stages
lies in the fact that in the former the greater part of the study
will be pursued on a basis of consciousness, and in the latter on
the basis of subconsciousness.
During the second stage a relatively small number of carefully
selected units will be presented one by one, each of which is there
and then to be completely and thoroughly assimilated by means
of those processes of study which we shall examine and analyse
later on. During the third stage a relatively large number of un-
selected units will be brought within the range of the student's
perceptive faculties in a haphazard order ; their assimilation will
be neither immediate nor thorough ; they will gradually become
inculcated by the slow cumulative process of natural absorption.
' One of the chief aims of the intermediate stage is to ensure
perfect fluency, both of expression and understanding.
In Section 19 we have spoken of the necessity for fluent
expression ; more important still is the necessity for fluent
comprehension. It is possible to express ourselves in broken
and halting sentences. By a desultory firing off of insecables,
we may possibly make ourselves understood ; the only sufferers
will be the persons who have to listen to us.
But imless we have acquired the art of fluent comprehension,
it is manifestly impossible to understand what is said to us by
fluent native speakers — and many native speakers are incapable
of any but ultra-fluent speech. Nor is it pleasant to be obliged
to interrupt with continual exhortations to speak slower, to
speak more distinctly, not to run the words together, to repeat,
etc., etc. Lack of fluent comprehension is to be attributed to a
faulty method rather than to slowness of perception. Students
whose training in fluent comprehension has been soimd should
understand the foreign language better when spoken rapidly
than when uttered word by word.
The second or intermediate stage will commence under the
170 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
most auspicious conditions. The pupils will have mastered the
foreign sounds a;id will be able to use the phonetic symbols
both actively arid passively. Their hearing faculties will have
been sharpened and their powers of auditive observation
developed. They will be able to reproduce sentences, both
seen and unseen, with accuracy and fluency.
Their elementary lessons on the various branches of lexi-
cology will have sharpened their wits and they will be to a large
extent immune from those vicious tendencies and errors which
are invariably the result of misconception and misimderstand-
ing of the nature of language.
The study proper of the French language in its active aspects
will now commence. The pupils will be from one to three
Terms behind those who have not been through the pre-
liminary stage, but they will now be ideally prepared and
perfectly ripe to enter the new stage of their study. No time
will be lost on long parenthetical explanations nor in those
vexatious interruptions which break the thread of an organized
and systematic course of language-study.
Other things being equal, they will rapidly overhaul their less
fortunate fellow-students, they will run while the others are
crawling, and their progress will be proportionate to their speed.
This stage will be characterized by a number of varied but
gradually converging lines of study. Most of them will be
based on the microcosm, that nucleus of scientifically chosen
units representing the quintessence of the language.
The lessons will generally consist of two or three parts, thus
ensuring variety and interest. Catenizing work will be inter-
spersed with exercises of a more lively character ; appeal will
be made to the auditive and visual faculties, to the powers of
perception, imitation and reasoning.
In the same way that the instructor of scientific gymnastics
devises special exercises, each of which is destined to act on a
certain set of muscles, so also will the language teacher devise
special exercises, each of which will play its part in the pro-
portional development of the pupil's linguistic knowledge.
The microcosm, formed in advance, will be characterized by
the various features and qualities described in Section 20.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 171
An adequate number of graduated substitution tables in
phonetic and orthographic script and with translations and
notes will be in the hands of each pupil . These will be accom^
panied by a number of appropriate exercises, both for oral and
written work.
There will be object-lessons, questions and answers both sys-
tematic and non-systematic. Abundant material for practice
in material association can be found in any class-room.
Appropriate progressive exercises for homework will be pro-
vided in book or card form ; the right exercise at the right
moment will strengthen the associations of the pupU and lighten
the work of the teacher. Each new fact perceived will be
driven home by cumulative examples and concretized instances.
Nothing taught from the microcosm is meant to evaporate when
once cognized and inculcated. Absolute assimilation is to be the
order of the day ; the pupil is to digest, in the shortest possible
time, with the least effort, and with a freedom from error, the
greatest quantity of the most essential matter of the language.
It will be useful to note at this point that in order to utilize
with rapidity and success many of the proposed exercises, a set
of special books should be in the hands of each pupil. This
being an ideal programme — ^that is to say, a programme of work
to be carried out under ideal conditions — ^we must assume the
existence of such books, and trust that ere long many of them
will be available for school work. While awaiting this moment,
the teacher may make good some of these deficiencies by writing
Qut various tables and groups on the blackboard, to be copied by
the pupils into special exercise-books provided for that purpose.
The second stage will be characterized, as we have said, by a
number of varied but gradually converging lines of study. We
will now describe and illustrate the more important of them.
Subconscious Comprehension
By the time that the pupil has arrived at the second stage,
the type of exercise for which we have suggested the above
title will have developed considerably. Having exhausted
the subjects connected with the schoolroom and its contents.
172 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
recourse wDl be had to pictures, of which, fortunately, there is
no lack. The teacher will exhibit one of these and proceed to
talk about the various objects, persons, and scenes portrayed
thereon ; he will describe country and town scenes, journeys,
and various occupations.
Many lessons may be given quite independently of pictures.
The habit of direct comprehension having been fostered and
developed daily over a long period, it will be possible for the
teacher to make himself understood even without recourse to
material association. The following is an example of the sort
of talk that will probably be fairly well understood during the
intermediate stage.
" Le cheval est un animal utile. Dans les rues on voit beau-
coup de chevaux. Ces animaux trainent les charrettes et les
voitures. Les vaches sont aussi des animaux. Les vacheSj
comme les chevaux, mangent de I'herbe. La vache a deux
cornes ; le cheval n'en a pas. La vache nous donne du lait.
Le lait est blanc. Nous buvons du lait. C'est la vache qui
nous donne le lait que nous buvons. Le mouton aussi est un
animal ; il est plus petit que le cheval et plus petit que la vache.
Le mouton nous donne de la laine. La laine est blanche. Avec
la laine nous faisons du drap et de I'etoffe. Mon veston est fait
en laine. Le mouton est un animal utile. Le chien est aussi
un animal utile ; il ne nous donne pas de lait ni de laine, mais
le chien garde la maison. II y a aussi des chiens qui gardent les
moutons. II y a des chiens qui sont tres grands, il y en a
d'autres qui sonts petits. Le chat est un animal ; il n'est pas
si utile que le chien. Les chats aiment beaucoup le feu ; ils
boivent du lait ; ils attrapent les souris. La souris n'est pas un
animal utile ; au contraire, c'est un animal nuisible ; on n'aime
pas les souris." Etc., etc.
Systematic Questionnaire
A second line of study may be carried out concurrently
conceived on the following lines :
Teacher. Est-ce la fenfetre ?
Pupils. Oui, c'est la fenetre.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 173
T. Est-ce la porte ?
P. Non, ce n'est pas la porte.
T. Qu' est-ce que c'est ?
P. C'est la fenetre.
T. Le plafond est-il blanc ?
P. Oui, il est blanc.
T. Le plafond est-il noir ?
P. Non, il n'est pas noir.
T. Quelle est la couleur du plafond ?
P. II est blanc.
T. Qu'est-ce qui est blanc ?
P. C'est le plafond.
T. Le livre est-il sur la chaise ?
P. Oui, il est sur la chaise.
T. Le Uvre est-il par terre ?
P. Non, il n'est pas par terre.
T. Oh est-il ?
P. H est sur la chaise.
T. Qu'est-ce qui est sur la chaise ?
P. C'est le livre.
T. Est-ce que le professeur prend le livre ?
P- Oui, il prend le livre.
T. Est-ce qu'il prend la craie ?
P. Non, il ne prend pas la craie.
T. Qu'est-ce qu'il prend ?
P. n prend le livre.
T. Qui est-ce qui prend le livre ?
P. C'est le professeur.
T. Ouvrez le Uvre ! Ouvrez-vous le livre ?
P. Oui, j'ouvre le livre.
T. Ouvrez-vous la porte ?
P. Non, je n'ouvre pas la porte.
T. Qu'est-ce que vous ouvrez ?
P. J'ouvre le livre.
T. Qui est-ce qui ouvre le livre ?
p. C'est moi.
174 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
T. fites-vous venu ici hier ?
P. Oui, je suis venu ici hier.
T. fites-vous venu ici samedi ?
p. Non, je ne suis pas venu ici samedi.
T. Quand etes-vous venu ici ?
P. Je suis venu ici hier.
T. Qui est-ce qui est venu ici hier ?
P. C'est moi.
T. Avez-vous mis le livre sur le pupitre ?
P. Oui, i'ai mis le Uvre sur le pupitre.
T. Avez-vous mis le crayon sur le pupitre ?
P. Non, je n'ai pas mis le crayon sur le pupitre.
T. Qu'avez-vous mis sur le pupitre ?
P. J'y ai mis im livre.
T. L'avez-vous mis sur le pupitre ?
P. Oui, je I'ai mis sur le pupitre.
T. L'avez-vous mis sur la chaise ?
P. Non, je ne I'ai pas mis sur la chaise.
T. Oil l'avez-vous mis ?
P. Je I'ai mis sur le pupitre.
T. Qui est-ce qui I'a mis sur le pupitre ?
P. C'est moi.
There is no limit to the number of model sentences which
can be developed into systematic questions and answers.
Any of those from the conjugation exercises will serve this pur-
pose, as will also any incidental sentences whatever. In this
type of exercise catenizing and semanticizing are performed
simultaneously.
The questions may be classified and asked in the cross
order :
Teacher Pupil
Qu' est-ce que c'est ? C'est la fenStre.
Qu' est-ce que c'est ? C'est la porte.
Qu'est-ce que c'est ? C'est le plafond.
Etc. Etc.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME
175
Teacher
Oil est le livre ?
Oil est la craie ?
Oil est la plume ?
Etc.
Quelle est la couleur du
plafond ?
Quelle est la couleur du mur ?
Quelle est la couleur du
papier ?
Quelle est la couleur de la
craie ?
Quelle est la couleur du livre ?
Quelle est la couleur de la
plume?
Quelle est la couleur de
I'encre ?
Etc.
Qu'est-ce que je fais ?
Qu'est-ce que je fais ?
Qu'est-ce que je fais ?
Qu'est-ce que je fais ?
Qu'est-ce que je fais ?
Etc.
Another form of systematic
series of question-and-answer
are typical specimens :
Qu'est-ce que le cheval ?
Qu'est-ce que le chien ?
Qu'est-ce que le chat ?
Qu'est-ce que le mouton ?
Qu'est-ce que la vache ?
Etc.
Qu'est-ce que la table ?
Qu'est-ce que la chaise ?
Qu'est-ce que le lit ?
Etc.
Pwpil
II est sur la table.
Elle est sur le pupitre.
EUe est sur la chaise.
Etc.
II est blanc.
II est jaune.
II est blanc.
Elle est blanche.
II est bleu.
Elle est rouge.
Elle est noire.
Etc.
Vous vous levez.
Vous marchez.
Vous allez a la porte.
Vous regardez le plafond.
Vous prenez le livre.
Etc.
questionnaire will be based on a
groups, of which the following
C'est
C'est
C'est
C'est
C'est
C'est
C'est
C'est
un animal,
un animal,
un animal,
un animal,
un animal.
Etc.
un meuble.
un meuble.
im meuble.
Etc.
ire STUDY AND TEACHING OF I^ANGUAGES
Teacher
Qu'est-ce que le fer ?
Qu'est-ce que For ?
Qu'est-ce que Fargent ?
Etc.
Qu'est-ce que le mur ?
Qu'est-ce que le plafond ?
Qu'est-ce que le plancher ?
Etc.
Qu'est-ce que le chapeau ?
Qu'est-ce que le veston ?
Qu'est-ce que le gilet ?
Etc.
Quelle est la couleur du pla-
fond?
QueUe est la couleur du col ?
Quelle est la couleur du del ?
Etc.
Quelle est la couleur de la
neige ?
Quelle est la couleur de la
craie ?
Quelle est la couleur de
I'herbe ?
Etc.
Oil est Londres ?
Oil est Douvres ?
Etc.
Oil est Paris ?
Oil est Lyon ?
Oil est Bruxelles ?
Oil est Geneve ?
Oil est Rome ?
Etc.
Pupil
C'est un metal.
C'est un metal.
C'est un metal.
Etc.
C'est une partie de la
chambre.
C'est une partie de la
chambre.
C'est une partie de la
chambre. Etc.
C'est un vetement.
C'est im vetement.
C'est un vetement.
Etc.
II est blanc.
II est blanc.
II est bleu.
Etc.
Elle est blanche.
EUe est blanche.
Elle est verte.
Etc.
Londres est en Angleterre.
Douvres est en Angleterre.
Etc.
Paris est en France.
Lyon est en France.
Bruxelles est en Belgique.
Geneve est en Suisse.
Rome est en Italic.
Etc.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME
Pupil
177
Teacher
Oil est-ce qu'on parle fran-
5ais ?
Oti est-ce qu'on parle ang-
lais ? Etc.
Quelle est la capitale de la
France ?
Quelle est la capitale de
I'Angleterre ?
Etc.
Qu'est-ce qu'on prend quand
on lit ?
Qu'est-ce qu'on prend quand
on ecrit ? Etc.
Que fait-on avec un crayon ?
Que fait-on avec une clef ?
Etc.
Quel est le premier jour de
On parle frangais en France.
On parle anglais en Angle-
terre. Etc.
C'est Paris.
C'est Londres.
Etc.
On prend un livre.
On prend un crayon ou une
plume. Etc.
Avec un crayon on ecrit.
Avec une clef on ferme la
porte. Etc.
la semaine ?
C'est lundi.
Quel est le deuxi^me jour de
la semaine ?
C'est mardi.
Etc.
Etc.
Quel est le premier mois de
ra,nnee ?
C'est Janvier.
Quel est le deuxifeme mois de
I'annee ?
C'est fevrier.
Etc.
Etc.
Combien de secondes y a-t-il
dans une minute ?
Combien de minutes y a-t-il
dans ime heure ?
Etc.
Que puis-je faire si j'ai un
livre ?
II y en a soixante.
II y en a soixante.
Etc.
Si vous avez un livre, vous
pouvez lire.
M
178 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Teacher Pupil
Que puis-je faire si j'ai une Si vous avez une brosse,
brosse ? vous pouvez brosser.
Etc. Etc.
Que dites- vous si vous voulez Si je veux un crayon, je dis
un crayon ? " Donnez-moi un crayon."
Etc. Etc.
Under ideal conditions each pupil will possess a book con-
taining a hundred or so of these groups properly graduated and
accompanied by appropriate exercises. Each group (containing
about ten members) will appear in phonetic script, with English
translation either on the same page or at the end of the book.
The manner of using these groups will be somewhat as follows :
Teacher. Turn to page one. I am going to read out to you
the sentences that you will find in group one.
Qu'est-ce que le cheval ? C'est un animal, etc.
Now you see frona your book what these sentences mean.
Qu'est-ce que le cheval P means What is a horse? The answer
C^est un animal means Ifs an animal. I am now going to ask
these questions, and to each of them you will answer C'est un
animal.
Qu'est-ce que le cheval ?
Pupils. C'est un animal.
Teacher. Qu'est-ce que le chien ?
Pupils. C'est un animal. Etc., etc.
Teacher. We wiU now take the second group. I shall ask
the question Qu'est-ce que la table ? and you will answer Cest un
meuble.
Qu'est-ce que la table ?
Pupils. C'est un meuble.
Teacher. Qu'est-ce que la chaise ?
Pupils. C'est un meuble. Etc., etc.
Teacher. Now I think that this is rather too easy for you.
I'm going to mix the questions, so be careful to give the
right answer, Cest un animal or Cest un meuble, as the case
may be.
Qu'est-ce que le chien ?
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 179
Pu/pils. C'est un animal.
Teacher. Qu'est-ce que la table ?
Pupils. C'est un meuble.
Teacher. Qu'est-ce que le lit ?
Pupih. C'est un meuble.
New groups will be repeated and mixed together aa before.
In a very short time the result will be :
Teacher. Qu'est-ce que le chapeau ?
Pupils. C'est im vfetement.
Teacher. Quelle est la couleur du plafond ?
Pupils. E est blanc.
Teacher. Oil est Londres ?
Pupils. Londres est en Angleterre.
Teacher. Qu'est-ce qu'on prend quand on lit ?
Pupils. On prend xm livre.
Teacher. Qu'est-ce que la vache ?
Pupils. C'est un animal. Etc., etc.
After some twenty or thirty periods of this type of work the
pupils (either collectively or individually) should have no great
difficulty in giving prompt and fluent answers to any of the
thousand or so questions of which the collection may be made
up.
Non-systematic Questionnaire
After a certain amount of systematic questioning has been
given the teacher may venture on questions chosen at random.
If a large nmnber of mistakes occur this work should be dropped
immediately and be postponed to a more propitious moment.
Qu'est-ce que c'est ? C'est le plafond.
Est-il haut ou bas ? II est haut.
Quelle est la couleur du
plafond ? II est blanc.
Pouvez-vous le toucher ? Non,jenepeuxpasletoucher.
Pourquoi pas ? Parce qu'il est trop haut.
Qu'est-ce que c'est ? C'est la porte.
Est-elle ouverte ou ferm^e ? Elle est fermee.
Pouvez-vous I'ouvrir ? Oui, je peux I'ouvrir.
180 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Pouvez - vous toucher
porte si vous restez la ?
Pourquoi pas ?
la
Qu'est-ce que c'est ?
A qui est-ce ?
Est-il ouvert ou ferme ?
Oh est-il ?
Qu'est-ce que je regarde ?
Est-ce un livre fran9ais ou
anglais?
Voyez-vous la fenfetre ?
Oil est-elle ?
Est-elle ouverte ou female ?
Le cheval, est-ce un animal
ou une plante ?
Un animal utile ou inutile ?
Avez-vous un chien ?
Est-il ici ?
Oil est-il ?
Etc.
Non, monsieur, je ne peux pas
toucher la porte si je reste ici.
Parce que la porte est trop
loin.
C'est un livre.
C'est a moi.
II est ouvert.
II est sur le pupitre.
Vous regardez le livre.
C'est un livre anglais.
Oui, je la vois.
Elle est la.
EUe est ouverte.
C'est un animal.
Un animal utile.
Oui, monseiur, j'ai un chien.
Non, il n'est pas ici.
II est chez moi.
Etc.
Substitution Tables
Another concurrent line of study will be the development and
use of substitution tables. The principal object of this type of
work is to contribute on a large scale to the enriching of the
pupils' vocabulary in the form of fluent sentences. Some of
the most suitable models during the early stages will be those
taken from the conjugation exercises. The pupils will repeat,
read, translate, and, in some cases, act, tables of the ' simple '
type, such as :
Je suis pret 4
commeneer.
lire.
6crire
me lever.
prendre le livre
sortir
partir.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME
J'ai
mon livre
mon crayon
mon papier
mon cahier
ma plume
devant moi.
Je mets le livre sur
le pupitre
la chaise.
le plancher.
la table.
les genoux.
le cahier.
Je vais
k la porte.
k la fenetre.
au pupitre.
au coin.
k la table.
k Londres.
en France.
k la gare.
Je mets la craie
dans
sur
devant
derri^re
kc&t6de
prds de
loin de
la bolte.
sous
181
Je
dois
veux
peux
ne dois pas
ne veux pas
ne peux pas
devrais
voudrais
pourrais
apprendre ces phrases tout de suite.
182 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Je dois apprendre ces phrases tout de suite.
maintenant.
ce soir.
demain.
samedi.
pour lundi.
la semaine prochaine.
Je
la donne
la passe
la pr&te
I'envoie
au professeur.
J'^cris quelque chose au tableau,
mon nom
un mot
ime phrase
des mots
des noms
Needless to say, every table will first be presented and studied
in the phonetic transcript with as few graphic separations as
possible.
These and other tables will be developed progressively into
their compound form :
Je ne peux pas
venir ici
demain
Je ne dois pas
aller 1^
lundi
Je ne veux pas
rester ici
la semaine prochaine
Vous ne pouvez pas
le faire
le mois prochain
Voulez-vous
I'avoir
I'annde prochaine
Faut-il
le voir
mardi
n ne faut pas
parler
maintenant
D faut
le dire
aujourd'hui
n^vaudrait mieux
sortir
a deux heures
n est difficile de
partir
samedi prochain
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME
188
Je mets
mon
livre
sur
le pupitre
Je vois
son
crayon
devant
la table
Je laisse
votre
cahier
derri^re
la chaise
notre
papier
la boite
leur
timbre
I'annoire
le
un
Je dis que ^
je suis
ici
11 dit que
tu es
1^
Dites-moi si ^
il est
chez moi
Savez-vous si
nous sommes
k Londres
Je ne sais pas si
vous fetes
en Angleterre
11 pense que
ils sont
en France
VoilA potirquoi
fatigu6(s)
Vous voyez que
pret(s)
n ne savent pas que
occupe(s)
Personne ne sait que
content(s)
Exercises of various kinds based on these tables will be given
as homework, specimens of which are included in the list of
exercises figuring in the next section,
EixERcisEs IN Matemal Association
Concurrently with the various lessons and exercises which we
have briefly sketched out, the names of all available objects
may be taught by material association. These will include
the parts of the room ; the various pieces of furniture, etc. ;
parts of the body ; articles of clothing ; small objects, including
those to be found in the average pocket.
Qu'est-ce que c'est ?
C'est la main.
„ la tete.
„ le bras.
• At an appropriate moment the pupils will learn, once for all, the various
rules of elision (?«' for gue, s' for si, etc.).
184 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Qu'est-ce que c'est ? C'est la bouche.
„ la poitrine.
Ce sont les mains.
„ les bras.
„ les doigts.
„ les jambes.
Etc. Etc.
I A large number of verbs, indicating concrete actions, may be
taught in the same way.
Qu'est-ce que je fais ?
Vous touchez la chaise,
levez „
portez „
renversez „
ramassez „
regardez „
tenez „
Certain more or less material adjectives may be treated :
Quelle est la couleux de ce livre-ci ? II est blanc,
5S 55 5) 55 S9 SS nOlT.
S5 5J JJ 5 5 59 55 TOUgC.
55 59 55 99 95 55 VCTl,
59 55 jaune. Etc.
II est haut.
EUe est grande.
II est petit.
EUe est froide.
Le plafond est-il haut ou bas ?
La classe est-elle grande ou petite ?
Le livre est-il grand ou petit ?
La fenetre est-elle chaude ou froide ?
Many of these groups fall more or less into the classes of
exercises already treated- — subconscious comprehension, sub-
stitution tables, questionnaire, etc. The distinguishing feature,
however, should be the fact that each word is consciously and
materially associated with some object, action, or quality.
Systematic Conjugation Exercises
On one of the first pages of a book of which the above would
be a suitable title will be found a series of sentences similar to
the following :
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 185
1. Je suis pr6t k commencer.
2. J'^coute le professeur.
8. Je comprends ce que j'entends.
4. J'ai mon livre devant moi.
5. Je sais ce que je dois faire.
6. Je prends le livre {or Je le prends).
7. Je commence a le lire.
8. Je finis de le lire.
9. Je le mets sur le pupitre.
10. Je me l^ve.
11. Je marche.
12. Je m'arrgte.
18. Je vais a la porte,
14. J'ouvre la porte (La porte s'ouvre).
15. Je ferme la porte (La porte se ferme),
16. Je sors de la classe.
17. J'entre dans la classe.
18. Je viens au pupitre du professeur.
19. Je monte sur I'estrade.
20. Je regois la craie.
21. Je la tiens dans la main droite.
22. J'ecris quelque chose au tableau.
23. Je lis ce que j'ai ecrit.
24. Je I'efface.
25. Je descends de I'estrade.
26. Je laisse tomber la craie.
27. Je la remasse.
28. Je la donne au professeur.
29. Je retoume a ma place.
30. Je m'assieds.
31. Je dois apprendre ces phrases tout de suite.
They will, however, appear in phonetic script and without
any separation between the words. The transcription will be
that of the most rapid speech.
1. ssqipreakomS'se.
2. sekutlaprofe'soeir.
3. gkSpraskaga'ta. Etc.
186 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
All of these sentences may already have been catenized during
the preliminary stage in the f onn of fluency practice.
The integral English translation will appear on the opposite
page ; the orthographic script will be given in another part
of the book.
The page immediately preceding will contain the same series
of sentences but in the interrogative form :
1. eitvupreakoma'se ?
2. ekutevulprofe'sceir ?
3. kopranevuskavuzata'de ? Etc.
The first lesson will be carried out somewhat on the following
lines :
" Pronounce after me [ssqipreakoma'se].
[The pupils do so.]
" That means I am ready to beg^n. Are you ready to begin ?
[One or more pupils will answer affirmatively.]
" Very well, then, tell me in French that you are ready to
begin. . . .
[Addressing a particular pupil] : " What does that mean ?
. . . Yes, it means / am ready to begin. Now I am going to
ask you in French whether you are ready to begin. When I
do so, each of you must answer in French. [eitvupreakDma'se] ?
[The pupils answer " [ssqipreakDmS'se]."
"Yes, that's very good. You probably know the French
word equivalent to the word yes . . . oui, that's right. Well,
put that word in front of the sentence. Now then, again :
[eitvupreakDmS'se] ? "
The pupils answer : " [wi, gsijipreakDma'se]."
And so on for the first five sentences. At the sixth sentence,
"I shall now ask you whether you are taking your books.
You will answer [wi, gpramo'liivr], and in order that your
answer may be true you will take the book which is lying
before each of you. [eskavuprsnevot'liivr] ? "
The pupils take their books and answer : " [wi, gpramo'liivr]."
The questions and answers may be gone over several times,
sometimes with the class collectively and sometimes with
individual pupils.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 187
" I want you to pay particular attention to the way I ask the
questions, because to-morrow I shall want some of you to take
my place and ask me the questions instead. You will find all
the questions on page . . . Your work for to-night will be
to learn the first nine questions and their meanings."
The whole of the thirty-one sentences will be treated in this
manner. After one or two lessons the interrogative will be
replaced by some form of command, preference being given to
some infinitive form :
1. n faut maintenant £tre prgt a commencer.
2. H faut ^couter le professeur. Etc.
Some of the brightest pupils will be invited to take the
teacher's place and ask the questions (or give the commands).
The book containing these conjugation exercises will give on
successive pages all or most of the conjugational variations of
each one of the sentences, one series per page.
At a subsequent lesson, some weeks later, the procedure will
have reached the following stage :
" You, A, will give the orders to B, C, and D. You, B, will
refuse to execute the order ; you, C, will be obedient and do
what you are told to do and will tell me what you are doing.
You, D, will also do what you are told, and will tell me what C
and you are doing. E, you wiU tell me what C is doing. F,
you will tell me what C and D are doing. G, you will tell me
that you haven't to do the action, H, you will tell me that you
are not doing the action, but that you will do it to-morrow,
I, you will ask J whether you are to perform the action, and you,
J, will tell him that he mustn't. You, K, will tell me that you
would do it if you had to." Etc., etc.
" Now, are you ready ? Start at sentence ten."
A. " Levez-vous ! "
B. " Je ne veux pas me lever ! "
C. "Jemel^ve."
D. " Nous nous levons."
E. " II se Ihve " (or " C se Ifeve.").
F. " Us se Invent " (or " C et D se Invent ").
188 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
G. " Je ne dois pas me lever."
H. " Je me Idverai demain."
I. " Faut-il me lever ? "
J. " Qui, il faut vous lever."
K. " Je me l^verais si je devais le faire."
At a later stage the terminology will be inculcated some-
what in the following manner :
" We will go through some of the actions again. Let me see,
who's taking the part of the present tense, first person singular? "
" I am, sir."
" Very well, stand up. All the present tenses stand up. . . .
You're a present tense, aren't you ? Stand up, then. Which
person are you ? Third person singular. All right."
" Please, am I to stand up ? I'm the present tense negative."
" No, I shan't want you for a moment. Now you six, we will
take the verb marcher. Conjugate ! "
Pwpil No. 1. " Je marche."
„ „ 2. "Tu marches."
„ „ 3. " II marche."
„ „ 4. " Nous marchons."
„ „ 5. " Vous marchez."
„ „ 6. " Us marchent."
" Now the verb alter."
Pupil No. 1. " Je vais a la porte."
„ „ 2. " Tu vas k la porte."
„ „ 3. " II va k la porte."
„ „ 4. " Nous allons a la porte."
„ „ 6. " Vous aUez k la porte."
„ „ 6. " lis vont k la porte."
And so on with several verbs.
" Now then, infinitives, get ready. Stand up. Why aren't
you standing up, M ? "
" Please, sir, I'm not an infinitive ; I'm the past participle."
" All right, past participle, you'll come on presently. You,
infinitive, over there, you were talking. What's your con-
comitant ? "
" n ne faut pas,"
AN IDEAL STAM)ARD PROGRAMME 189
"Well, you will bring me to-morrow three copies of the
present tense of Je ne dois pas parler pendant la legon. Now
then, infinitives, let me hear your lines; we will take as an
example the verb se lever ."^
Pupil No. 16. " Je ne veux pas me lever."
17. " Voulez-vous vous lever ? "
18. " II ne faut pas vous lever."
19. " Je voudrais me lever."
20. "Faut-il me lever?"
21. " Vous pouvez vous lever."
22. " H est difficile de se lever."
23. " II vaudrait mieux se lever."
And so on with several verbs.
" Past participles, stand up. Are you a complete tense ? "
" No, sir."
" What do you want to make a complete tense ? "
" A past participle concomitant."
" What are the past participle concomitants in French ? "
" The two auxiliaries, avoir and itre"
" Do you know when to use one or the other ? "
" I think I do, sir."
" Give me some examples of the use oiMre, then."
" Je suis venu, Je suis alU, Je me suis levS, Je suis retourni,
Je me suis assis."
" What is the name of that tense ? "
" The passe indefini."
" You said just now Je me suis assis. What does that mean? "
" It means / sat down."
" Do all French people say Je me suis assis ? "
" No, sir ; ladies say Je me suis assise."
" What do we call the change from assis to assise ? "
" Agreement, sir."
[To the whole class:] "Levez-vous! . . . Qu'avez- vous fait?"
" Nous nous sommes lev^s."
" Asseyez-vous ! Qu'avez-vous fait ? "
"Nous nous sommes assis."
" And if you were girls instead of boys, what would you
answer ? "
190 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
" Nous nous sommes assises."
" And if this were a mixed class of girls and boys ? "
" Nous nous sommes assis."
" Infinitive M, the imperative afflnnative, the past participle,
the present tense second person singular, stand up. Repeat
the word you represent for the verb donner.^'
The infinitive : " [dDne]."
The imperative affirmative : " [done] ."
The past participle : " [done]."
The present tense, second person plural : " [done]."
" But that's the same word ! Do you mean to tell me that
each of you have to say [done] ? "
A pupil : " It happens to be the same in this case, sir."
" Let's try another verb. We'll take the French equivalent
for to open."
The infinitive : " [uvriir]."
The imperative affirmative : " [uvre]."
The past participle : " [uveir]."
The present tense, second person plural : " [uvre]."
And so on, eliciting one after another the various terms
considered necessary for the understanding of French grammar.
The Eegonic Chakt i
Shortly after the beginning of the secondary stage the Ergonic
Chart will be introduced and gradually developed. A primitive
chart may consist of a blackboard reserved specially for this
purpose, a number of small squares of card, and a supply of
drawing-pins. A more ambitious apparatus may be devised
of stout straw-boards neatly covered with black paper and
provided with grooved ledges, pegs, and holes.
The various lexicological units will be written in fairly large
letters on small cards or slips of paper.
At the first lesson in which this branch of the programme is
treated a few simple sentences will be chosen from among those
already forming part of the pupil's stock.
The pupils will be invited to write words on slips and to come
' See Appendix I.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 191
and attach them to the blackboard. The nature of the various
ergonic classes will be introduced, explained, combined, and
analysed.
As time goes on this rough synoptic table or scheme of ' visible
grammar' will be developed slowly but surely. Each new
abstract fact will become spatialized, concretized, and readily
assimilated even by those who have hitherto seemed incapable
of grasping the most elementary knowledge of the mechanism
of speech.
Just as we designed various exercises to develop the auditive
faculties, so will our ergonic chart strengthen and encourage the
capacities of visualization.
The various lessons given in front of the ergonic chart will
treat of the function of each of the parts of speech, the mechan-
ism of the French system of inversion, the mechanism of the
verb, and the verbal inflexions. The various phenomena con-
nected with the interrogative and negative forms, modification
by adjectives and adverbs of degree will all be shown so
clearly that the learning of ' rules and exceptions ' will be
dispensed with and superseded by direct and spatialized
understanding.
Living Ergonics
In a type of work which we may designate by the above title
the pupils themselves take the place of the slips or cards, and
the schoolroom floor serves as a background for the ergonic
chart.
The following arrangement and general method of working
will be foimd suitable for a class of about twenty pupils :
Pupil No. Role Type-unit
1.
Subject
je
2.
Negative
ne
3.
Imperative (second person)
prenez
4.
Present
prends
6.
Imperfect
prenais
6.
Future
prendrai
7.
Conditional
prendrais
192 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Pupil No. Rdle Type-unit
8. Past participle concomi- ai (or suis)
tant
9. Infinitive concomitant peiue
10. Adverbs pas, toujours
11. Past participle pris
12. Infinitive prendre
13. Direct object le livre (or le)
14. Indirect object au professeur (or lui)
15. Subjective complement blanc
16. Place id
17. Dm'ation pendant devix heures
18. Manner lentement
19. Time maintenant
Later on it will be well to appoint one of the pupils as repre-
sentative of such units as Est-ce que, Je pense que, II faut qv£,
etc. If the nvimber of pupils is in excess of the number we
have mentioned, minor rdles (such as adverbs of degree) can
be created, or certain parts may be doubled by imderstudies.
The pupils should be taught to ' fall in ' in the manner
illustrated on opposite page.^
Each pupil should learn his ergonic name and be instructed in
his part. During the first two lessons the parts should be con-
fined as far as possible to the type units. Nos. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 12,
and 13, however, must be prepared to produce their respective
tenses (first person singular) of prendre (for use with the direct
object), venir (for use with the place complement), donner (for
use with the indirect object), attendre (for use with the duration
complement), and itre (for use with the subjective complement).
The Subject will be told that he occupies the first place in
the sentence except in cases of inversion. He must also be told
to ' fall out ' whenever the Imperative is present.
The Imperative will be told that he can only be preceded
by ne.
The Present, Imperfect, Future, and Conditional will be told
that they are the Simple Tenses and must stand to the left of
^ The pupils are presumed to be facing the left of the diagram.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 193
the Subject except in cases of invetsion, when they will change
places with the Subject.
©
®©®®@®®
© @@
©
©
©
©
©
©
©
The Past Participle Concomitant will be told that he can
never appear without the Past Participle, who will generally
stand next to him on the left, but who may be separated from
194 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
him by 'pas and other adverbs (10). He will also be told
when to take the form of ai or of suis.
The Past Participle will be shown his place.
The last two pupils will be told that they form together the
Past Indefinite Tense.
Similar instructions will be given to the Infinitive Concomitant
and the Infinitive.
Ne will be told that his place is on the right of the Imperative,
Present, Imperfect, Future, and Conditional Tenses, and of the
two Concomitants.
Pas will be instructed to take up his position on the left of
the above tenses.
The Direct Object must be instructed that his place is
normally to the left of the verb, from which he can only be
separated by yas and other adverbs. If he should repre-
sent a personal pronotm, however, he must stand to the right
of the Simple Tenses and of the Past Participle Concomitant,
but between the Infinitive Concomitant and the Infinitive. He
will also be told to change places with the Indirect Object when
the latter is represented by me, te, se, or vous.
The Indirect Object will be given similar instruc-
tions.
The other pupils will learn their respective positions and
duties.
Obviously the whole of the class must pay attention to all
these instructions, and each individual will be expected after
a few lessons not only to be expert in his own part, but to
be fairly well acquainted with the parts played by the other
members.
A special exercise-book in which all the instructions will be
noted should be compiled by each pupil. One page (at least)
will be reserved for each ergonic part. The following is a
characteristic specimen of one of the pages :
John Smith. Infinitive Concomitant
Type-unit : peuco.
Conjugation of same: peux, peux, peut, pouvons, pouvez,
peuvent.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 195
Place : On the left of Subject. May be separated from
Subject by ne, by Direct Object (when a personal
pronoun), and by Indirect Object (when a personal
pronoun).
Changes places with Subject in case of inversion.
On the right of Infinitive. May be separated from
Infinitive by pas, Direct Object (when a personal
pronoun), and Indirect Object (when a personal
pronoun).
Most frequent units : dois, dais, doit, devons, devez, doivenl.
veux, veux, veut, voulons, vaulez, veulent.
faut.
espere, esperes, espere, esperons, esperez,
esperent.
Specimen Lesson
" Subject, Present, Direct Complement, Time Complement,
take your places ! "
[They do so.]
" Each pupil will recite his irnit."
" Je — prends — le livre — maintenant,"
" The whole class will repeat Je prends le livre maintenant."
[They do so.]
" What does that mean ? "
" / take the book now, or / am taking the book now."
" Very well. Negatives, take your places."
" Each pupil will recite his unit."
" Je-^-ne — prends — pas — le livre — maintenant.''''
" Negatives, dismiss ! "
[Addressing the Direct Complement :] " What part are you
taking ? "
" Direct Complement, sir."
" Very well. Do you know by what other name you are
known ? "
" Yes, sir ; Direct Object."
" That's right. Are you a noim or a pronoun at
present ? "
" A noun, sir."
196 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
" Well, I now want you to represent the pronoun le."
[Direct Complement passes behind Present Tense and takes
his place on the other side.]
" Each pupil will recite his unit ! "
" Je — le — prends — maintenant."
" Negatives, take your places ! "
" Each pupil will recite his unit."
" Je — ne — le — prends — pas — maintenant."
" Negatives, dismiss ! Present Tense, dismiss ! Fall in,
Future ! "
" Each pupil will recite his imit."
" Je — le — prendrai — maintenant."
"Dismiss!"
" Form the following sentence : Je peux venir ici demain."
" Each pupil will recite his unit."
" The whole class repeat Je peux venir ici demain."
" Negatives, take your places."
" Each pupil will recite his unit."
" The whole class repeat Je ne ^peux pas venir ici
demain."
" Dismiss ! "
" Form the French equivalent of the sentence / did not give
it to him yesterday.
" That's right, Subject, extreme right as usual. What are
you doing here. Imperfect ? This sentence does not concern
you ; go back to your place. Now, then. Past Participle, we
are waiting for you. Direct and Indirect Complements, what
are you running round each other for ? Direct to the right and
Indirect to the left. Ne, a little more to the right. Direct
and Indirect Complements have to stand between you and the
Past Participle Concomitant. In order now ? Each pupil will
recite his unit."
" The whole class will recite the sentence Je ne le lui ai pas
donnS."
" That wasn't very smart ; we must go over that again.
Dismiss ! Once again ; the French equivalent of / did not give
H to him."
Etc.» etc.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 197
The Scmpt
The introduction of the orthographic script should be post-
poned as long as possible. Were the phonetic script merely an
instrument to ensure a normal pronunciation it might be dis-
pensed with as soon as habits of normal pronunciation had been
acquired. But seeing that the phonetic aspect of language has
an importance apart from questions of pronunciation, that many
problems connected with the mechanism of the language can
only be adequately imderstood by studying the true base of all
linguistic phenomena, the sound, the introduction of the con-
ventional spelling system should be delayed as long as possible
— ^the longer the better. We would suggest that a minimum of
two years should be accorded to the exclusive use of the phonetic
transcription.
The traditional spelling requires no particular period of
transition ; we have data proving conclusively that the pupil
who has been trained by the use of phonetic symbols, all other
things being equal, is a better speller than the one who has
not enjoyed the advantages of such a training. It will be
found that when the more important lexicological units of a
given language have been assimilated, the orthographic form
of such units is acquired by the spontaneous or automatic
process.
The pupils themselves will soon discover the esse^ntial
facts of orthoepy ; they will soon perceive that [y^ is
almost invariably written in French by means of the letter
u, etc., etc.
The introduction of the traditional spelling may be the signal
for a general recapitulation of all past work. It may take the
form of exercises in which the phonetic is to be converted into
the orthographic text, and vice versa.
Much can be done by a series of guessing competitions. We
write on the blackboard various words and sentences, and ask
the pupils to guess for what words they stand, or we devise home-
work to the same effect.
" Take care of the phonetics and the spelling will take care
of itself" is a true saying and worthy of all respect.
198 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Section 24.— The third or advanced stage, of the duration of from one
to three years, will complete the scholastic training of the pupil.
It will consist of :
(a) Subconscious work (rapid reading, mental and oral;
listening to talks, stories, and lectures).
(b) Free composition (descriptions of objects, pictures, and
events).
(c) Free translation (French into English and English into
French).
(d) Conversation.
(e) Systematic study of texts.
Under ideal conditions, the third or advanced stage will
commence at the moment that the previous efforts of the
student have enabled him to understand the greater part of
what he hears and reads, and to express in a simple manner and
with a relative freedom from error by the oral and written
mediums about 75 per cent, of the matter contained in the
ordinary everyday speech of the average person.
This 75 per cent, of matter consists of the relatively small-
number of units contained in the microcosm ; the 25 per cent. ■
which remains consists of the residue of the language, the mass
of the vocabulary, the infinite number of ergonic combinations
of all degrees.
The study of a language is never-ending ; no one can claim to
have a perfect knowledge even of his own language after a life-
time of intensive study. All that one can hope to do is to acquire
the faculty of converting thoughts into lexicological units, and
vice versa, to such a degree that the attendant problems and
difficulties are reduced to a practical minimum.
The ideal programme starts at a fixed point : that at which
our knowledge of the foreign language stands at zero. The
ideal programme has no concluding point ; it continues through-
out the lifetime of the student ; every conversation in which he
participates, every lecture of which he is an auditor, every book
of which he is a reader, and every composition of which he is the
author advances him on his way.
To determine the point at which the scholastic or tutorial
study should be replaced by those types of study which consist
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 199
of the using of the language in social intercourse, and the apply-
ing of language to intellectual ends would be but an arbitrary
proceeding, and' we shall not attempt it.
Nor do we propose to give in any detail any precise indica-
tions as to the manner in which the last section of the scholastic
programme is to be carried out by teacher and by student. If
the conclusions that we have so far reached are sound, and if
the two stages so far described have been traversed in accord-
ance with the principles already indicated, and in the manner
which will be fully described in the later sections of this book,
there will be little or no need to dwell at any length on the
problems of the advanced stage.
Nor need we postulate any special process of transition.
When the student has reached the point which is the signal
for his entry into the third stage, he will be able to plunge
straight into this without any furi;her preliminary work.
If the first and second stages have been conscientiously treated
by an expert method-maker, a competent teacher, and an
average student, the third stage will take care of itself.
Starting this stage under the same happy auspices that
marked the entry into the second, but increased in a tenfold
degree, the student will henceforth progress with the same ease
and rapidity as if the language were his mother tongue. The
pupil's working power will have been fostered and cultivated.
Everything that he has learnt has been designed not only to
increase his linguistic knowledge, but also to increase his power
of acquiring further knowledge. The daily investments made
during the earlier periods have long since been yielding, and will
continue to yield, compound interest, the rate of progress will
continue on the same scale, and httle by little the artificial
element of study will give way to the natural and spontaneous
course of study with all its stimulus and incentive.
The first two stages are necessarily and essentially of an
artificial character. Except for the daily exercises in subcon-
scious comprehension, the student does not work on the lines
of a young child in the earliest period of his study of his native
language. Arrived, however, at the end of the second stage,
the student is more or less in the same position as the child at
200 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
a later stage, and commences to enjoy all the advantages and
facilities of the process of spontaneous and natural assimilation.
In order better to realize the differences and resemblances
between the natural programme pursued when learning our own
native language and the semi-artificial programme which it is
the main object of this book to describe, we may aptly form an
analogy between this subject and that concerning the growth
of plants.
In the state of nature there is neither garden nor gardener ;
there is no hot-house, no watering-can, neither spade nor rake,
nor any of those artificial appliances considered indispensable
by the horticulturist.
The flower blooms and engenders seed ; the seed may germi-
nate, form a root, send up a stem, and finally develop into a hardy
and worthy representative of its family. This is the natural
method in all its simplicity.
The gardener wishes the phenomena of growth to be mani-
fested at a given time and in a given place. Were he to take
the seed, to treat it with chemicals in a laboratory, to tend it
with a thermometer, with X-, N-, and Z-rays, and with doses of
electrical energy, he would not be submitting the plant to the
natural method of growth. The results might be satisfactory ;
perhaps one day some artificial method may supersede the
other, but up to the time of writing these methods are not
current among gardeners.
Does he then adopt the other extreme and leave the raising
of plants to imaided nature ? Is he a passive spectator of the
chance fall of the seed, of its chance germination aided by
chance showers ? Does he not rather tend the soil with nitrates
and garden tools ? Does he not place the seed into the ground
at a given and predetermined depth at a predetermined period
of the year ? Does he not ensure the future development by
means of scarecrows, soot, lime, and weed-killers ? Does he not
subsequently prick out the embryonic plant, bind its fragile
stem to a support, water it during the drought, and encourage
it with a glass bell ?
All these proceedings are of an artificial nature in that they
differ in kind and degree from those of Mother Nature. And
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 201
yet, in so far that each one of these proceedings is an intense
application of the methods of nature, such proceedings may
be termed natural in a somewhat qualified acceptation of the
term.
But when the preliminary stage of soil preparation has been
accomplished, and when the plant has attained the proportions
of a hardy microcosm of its future self, the gardener may leave
the plant to nature during the residuary stage and nature will
do the rest.
The gardener has exercised all his arts in order to ensure a
successful passage through the critical stage ; he has curbed
the vicious tendencies and has supplied the right food at the
right time. The plant can now take care of itself, find its own
food, or be prepared to fast.
Such is the not inapt analogy that we wotdd suggest between
the respective developments of that concrete organism called a
plant and that abstract organism which is the lexicological
stock contained in the brain of a student.
In both cases the development may be carried out by the
unaided processes of natiu-e ; in both cases this development
may conceivably be forced by purely artificial means, and in
both cases this development may be brought about by a wise
and intense application of natural methods in a semi-artificial
manner during a certain period, after which nature unaided
accomplishes the rest.
To leave too little to nature and to expect too much from
nature are both errors ; to determine to what extent conscious
intervention and artificial aid may be judicious or essential is
an important function both of the gardener and of the language-
teacher.
The reader would perhaps wish to push the analogy still
farther. He may suggest that the adult plant still requires the
attention of the expert gardeners ; that there must be pruning
and training, constant supervision and ever-present care. He
may suggest that the analogy points to similar activities on the
part of the teacher even in the third stage.
It is dangerous to push an analogy too far ; in this ease there
is a difference sensible between the development of a concrete
202 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
vegetable organism and an abstract organism which is nothing
more nor less than a given quantity of lexicological material in
the brain of a language-learner.
(Let it be carefully noted here that we are not forming an
analogy between a seed and a person, nor between a seed and
a lexicological unit.)
In one case the developed product will be a concrete mass of
vegetable matter ; in the other it will be the faculty of tisir^
a mass of lexicological or thought-interpreting matter.
The ultimate destiny of the plant is to produce leaves, flowers,
fruits, and the seeds of the next generation, whereas in the other
ease the faculty of using the lexicological units is an end in
itself.
We agree that this faculty may also be a means to a further
end : the production and appreciation of literary work ; but this
has little or nothing in common with the teaching or learning
of a foreign language. The subject of our inquiry and the title
of this book is the scientific study of languages ; we trust that
none wUl expect us to include considerations concerning the
scientific production and the scientific appreciation of literature I
The third stage is intended to enable the student to become
acquainted with, and eventually to be able to use, the vast mass
of the vocabulary. The microcosm is the framework containing
innumerable cells called ergonic categories ; each of these cells
contains a little, and a very little, matter ; during the residuary
stage these cells will become filled with the rich lexicological
matter of the language, new cells will be formed in tiun to be
filled, and the term foreign language will gradually become a
misnomer, for it will become transformed into a second native
language existing side by side and on intimate terms of amity
with the other.
The third stage will give to the student neither a good pro-
nunciation nor fluency, for the obvious reason that long before
entering this stage he will possess both. The good pronuncia-
tion will have been acquired as early as the first period, and one
of the chief objects of the second period was to ensure perfect
fluency both of expression and of understanding.
The good habits formed during the first periods should bear
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 208
fruit during the whole period of subsequent study. Care, how-
ever, must be exercised in order to prevent any relapse or giving -
way to the vicious tendencies. Should any serious outbreak of
these occur, the student must at once be subjected to an inten-
sive special treatment in order to stamp out the incipient per-
nicious habit. Various ailments and their cures are cited in
the part devoted to " Special Programmes " (Section 28).
When necessary, we must inculcate the principles of study,
warn the student against an exaggerated use of his synthetic
faculties, and drive home the precept that by imitation alone are
languages learnt.
Let us occasionally ask the pupil to quote some of the latest
acquisitions to his lexicological stock ; let him answer the
question : " What word or combination of words have you
particularly noticed during this last week's work, and which of
them have you incorporated into your nucleus of lexicological
units ? "
Presiuning that the student has managed to keep clear of the
vicious tendencies, and that quality has been, and is being, main-
tained, what is solely required during the final period is quantity.
To this effect the student must read books and listen to speech
in order to enrich his vocabulary, and must speak and write in
order to use the material so acquired.
In this connexion let us bear in mind the dictum that " Read-
ing maketh a full man, conference a ready man, and writing an
exact man."
The vocabulary of our native language increases by the con-
tinual growing of the well-formed nucleus. The microcosm of
the second stage forms the nucleus to which the matter of the
advanced stage will naturally gravitate and in which it will
become absorbed. The symmetrical and continual enlarge-
ment of a well-formed nucleus is the formula of the snowball,
and also of our ' advanced stage.'
This third stage is undifferentiated, if by non-differentiation
we mean the simultaneous absorption of all the aspects of each
new unit or of groups of new imits.
Although undifferentiated, there is no reason why it should
not be graduated, especially at the beginning. Not that we
204 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
would subdivide this stage in a rigid manner into a series of
sub-stages each of which is to be preparatory to the next.
What we would imply is that the first texts to be studied
and our first conversations should be relatively simple ; that
now, as before, the more frequent should have a preference
over the less frequent units, and that modern colloquial should ;
still preponderate over the archaic and literary forms of ex-
pression.
The charm and quaintness of old-fashioned or imusual forms
of expression is solely due to the fact that they are not those of
current everyday speech, and in order to appreciate the aesthetic
, value of such forms a sound knowledge of the everyday idiom
is essential. Were the language of Gray's Elegy the language
of everyday speech, and did we express the banalities of daily
life by means of lexicological units such as those to be found in
Hamlet's Soliloquy, thfe greater part of their charms would be
lost.
When for some cause or other an old-fashioned phrase with
a literary flavour comes back from the grave and is used in
colloquial and vulgar speech, how rapidly it loses its charm !
" What ho, there, ye base varlets 1 " was once a delightfully
old-fashioned gem of diction. Comedians and costermongers
have reduced it to the level of a vulgarism.
Thou, thee, thy, and thine are English archaisms ; they conse-
quently evoke quaint and pleasing literary emotions. The
French tu, te, toi, ton, etc., are not archaisms ; they conse-
quently evoke no aesthetic emotion whatever. It is forbidden
has an old-time majestic ring which is not to be fotmd in the
semantic equivalent It is prohibited ; but Es ist verboten suggests
nothing but tmaesthetic severity.
If for no other reason than this, it is essential that the
student's first text-books should contain but the plainest and
least artistic specimens of the language.
Let us first acquire a perfect knowledge of the commonplace,
trivial, and even vulgar expressions of modern inartistic speech,
in order to render ourselves capable of appreciating at a later
period the aesthetic side of speech.
In this respect, again, the student of the foreign language is.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 205
even in the advanced stages, not in the same position as the
native. The native, being perfectly familiar with the colloquial
language in all its banaUty, appreciates fully the beauty, the
glamoTir, the delicacy, the majesty, the severity, the tender-
ness, the asceticism, and the humour to be foimd in the higher
regions of linguistic expression.
The first texts should be prepared carefully in accordance with
the principle of gradation. They should contain from 90 per
cent, to 95 per cent, of the matter of the microcosm. As time
goes on, this percentage may be decreased, but will probably
never faU below 65 per cent, or 70 per cent.
The best t5^e of text will consist of short anecdotes, humorous
stories, and interesting items of general information selected from
current periodicals and carefully edited and simplified. The
colloquial /and simple explanatory styles should be used ; both
slang and archaisms should be avoided.
The easiest and most natural texts are those which constitute
the most faithful reflection of thie language as it is truly spoken
by all sorts and conditions of native speakers without the inter-
vention of the descriptive or explanatory styles.
But mere reproductions of street-comer conversations concern-
ing the weather or the current political situation will not suffice.
In addition to its simpUcity and fidelity to real speech, the
subject-matter must have an intrinsic interest. The dramatic
or the humorous elements must be present. For adult pupils
the only reading matter fulfilling these conditions would appear
to be modem comedies by such authors as Pinero or H. A. Jones
and their foreign equivalents.
Reading may be intensive and extensive. In the former case
each sentence is subjected to a careful scrutiny, and the more
interesting may be paraphrased, translated, or learnt by heart.
In the latter case book after book will be read through without
giving more than a superficial and passing attention to the lexi-
cological imits of which it is composed.
AD the usual expedients may be utilized to make conversa-
tion, to stimulate composition, and to cause the student to
exercise his perceptive and imitative faculties. Exercises
and tests of the most varied nature may be given in order to
206 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
ensure a sound and proportionate attention to all the aspects
of the matter studied.
The student will read aloud, will listai to the reading of the
teacher, will summarize the contents of a chapter. There will
be dictation, both phonetic and orthographic ; the pupil will
convert phonetic passages into the orthographic form, and vice
versa ; he will give answers to a questionnaire that must ever be
kept up to date by his teacher.
There will be recapitulations in which the newer will be
correlated with the older matter. Semantic groups will be
formed and new ergonic famihes will be formulated. The
student will learn to use a note-book, or, better still, the loose-
leaf book, or, best of all, the card index.
As time goes on the texts will become more and more rich in
new material ; from the everyday colloquial we pass through
various types of style ; the simple explanatory style as employed
by writers on popular science and current events, the simple
descriptive style as found in books of adventure and travel,
then the more florid varieties of the explanatory and descriptive
styles, and finally into the realms of the classical literature
modern and ancient.
Mechanical exercises are replaced to an ever-increasing
extent by freer and more ambitious types of work. The
linguistic material already acquired has taken deep root and
is sending out stout branches, and the quasi-organism can grow
and develop by purely natural means.
At the moment when, according to old-fashioned ideas, the
systematic study of theory should commence, our pupils under
the ideal conditions of to-morrow will dispense with it, for it
will have served its purpose.
Practice will now be the order of the day ; practice in
speaking, in reading, in composing, yes, and practice in
translating.
After from one to two years of practice in the advanced stage,
speaking, understanding, reading, and writing, not the broken
Anglo-French which it was formerly the habit to inculcate,
but the real French of France, our pupils will be promoted to
the higher forms, and pass from the hands of the language-
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 207
teacher into the hands of those who are entrusted with the
teaching of that branch of art known as French literature.
The work of the language-teacher is over.
Section 25.— We may append here a comprehensive and descriptive
list of most of the types of exercises which will be found of use
during the three stages. While many of them are suitable for
work in the class-room, they will generally be utUized as material
for homework and for private study.
No serious attempt has been made to classify the following
list of exercises ; indeed so many of them are designed to fulfil
more than one purpose that it would be difficult, if not im-
possible, to classify them in any precise or satisfactory manner.
Certain types of exercises have been so fully treated in sub-
sections 22 and 28 that it is imnecessary that they should
figure in the present list.
|i For the sake of conciseness the instructions for the performance
of these exercises have been worded in terms perfectly compre-
hensible to the reader of the present work, but of too abstract
a nature for the use of school-children. In the actual French
method, examples will be given in most of the cases in order to
show exactly what the pupil is required to do.
Our object in supplying specimens has been to illustrate by
more or less tjrpical examples the nature of each of the exercises
proposed ; consequently no consistent attempt has been made
to graduate them nor apply them to particular problems. The
object of our present inquiry is to suggest the lines on which
French might be taught, but not to furnish the method itself.
{A) Mechanical Exercises
Serving to inculcate Primary Matter
1. Copying out matter in the phonetic transcript. (This
exercise is characteristic of the elementary stage.)
The object of this exercise is to famiharize the pupil with
the forms of the symbols and to make him proficient in tracing
them. If the matter so given coincides with the sentences and
208 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
polylogs to be catenized, this exercise will be an auxiliary to
the operation of catenizing.
The text serving as model should be printed in distinct and
fairly large type.
While some teachers advocate the use of script characters,
others prefer the pupils to ' print ' them. A pupil who has been
in the habit of ' printing ' the characters will be less likely to
confuse the phonetic and orthographic scripts, and for this
reason the latter course is to be recommended.
The pupil should pronounce each letter as he traces it, and
pronounce each unit as completed.
2. Copying out matter in orthographic form. (For use
during the intermediate stage.)
This form of exercise will be useful as one of the means to
teach the orthographic forms of units hitherto met with only
in their phonetic form. The pupil should pronoimce every
word as it is completed.
3. Reading aloud from phonetic transcription. (Char-
acteristic of the elementary and intermediate stages.)
A valuable auxiliary to catenizing, serving to connect the ear
and feye memories, and to ensure their correlation.
4>. Reading aloud from the orthographic transcription.
(Characteristic of the later intermediate and advanced
stages.)
This should only be resorted to in the microcosmic stage, when
the student is perfectly well acquainted with the pronunciation
of the imits contained in the reading matter. During the
advanced period the reading aloud of an orthographic text will
constitute a most valuable form of subconscious assimilation.
5. Phonetic dictation (includiag nonsense dictation).
(Elementary and intermediate stages.)
A useful auxiliary to catenizing and the natiual sequence to
Exercises 1 and 8.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 209
6. Orthographic dictation. (Intermediate and advanced
stages.)
Complementary to Exercises 2 and 4. Of value for orthoepic
work (the study of relations between sounds and their con-
ventional representation).
Nos. 3, 4, 5, 6 obviously to be used in the class-room.
7. Transcribing in phonetic form matter supplied in ortho-
graphic form. (Intermediate and advanced stages.)
This may be called visual phonetic dictation. It enables the
pupil to make progress in pronunciation, orthoepy, and orthog-
raphy without the presence of the teacher. Especially valuable
at the moment of the introduction of the orthographic script.
8. Transcribing in orthographic script matter supplied in
phonetic form. (Intermediate and advanced stages.)
Complementary to Exercises 2, 6, and 7.
9. Repeating substitution tables after the teacher.
(Intermediate stage.)
The teacher pronounces the model sentence previously caten-
ized by the pupil ; the pupil repeats it after him. The teacher
pronounces the sentence modified successively by the sub-
stitutive elements of the various coltunns. Each sentence pro-
nounced is immediately repeated by the pupil. This exercise
should be constantly performed after the pupil has acquired an
adequate stock of model sentences.
10. Reading substitution tables. (Intermediate stage.)
Complementary to and the natural sequence of 9.
11. Copying out substitution tables. (Intermediate stage.)
Complementary to 1 and 9.
(B) Semi-Mechanical and * Intellectual ' Exercises
Serving to inculcate primary matter and to develop the
pupil's capacity of producing correct secondary matter.
210 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
12. Repeating substitution tables, the substitutive elements
of which are suggested by the teacher in English.
(Intermediate stage.)
Example :
Teacher. Je ne peux pas venir ici demain.
Pupil. Je ne peux pas venir ici demain.
T. Next week.
P. Je ne peux pas venir ici la semaine prochaine.
T. On Monday.
P. Je ne peux pas venir ici Ixmdi.
T. Next month.
P. Je ne peux pas venir ici le mois prochain.
T. At two o'clock.
P. Je ne peux pas venir ici a deux heures. Etc., etc.
One of the most productive forms of work ensuring rapid
results on absolutely soimd lines. The integral translation
does not prevent the pupil from ' thinking in French.'
13. Giving integral English equivalent of French ergonic
units previously memorized. (Intennediate stage.)
Example :
Teacher Pupil
La semaine prochaine. Next week.
La fenetre. The window
Regardez ie livre. Look at the book.
Je voudrais. I would like to.
Faut-il? Shall I?
Deux ou trois. Two or three.
Encore un peu. A little more.
II ne faut pas. You mustn't.
En France. In France.
Je ne sais pas. I don't know.
Je vais. I am going.
Etc. Etc.
All matter given in this form of exercise is presumed to have
been previously learnt by the pupil in the form of integral
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 211
equivalents. The introduction of unseen sentences or polylogs
would convert this exercise into a type of synthetic translation,
a form of work exemplified in Exercise 41.
14. Giving the integral French equivalent of English
ergonic units. (Intermediate stage.)
Example :
Teacher Pupil
Come here. Venez ici.
I don't understand. Je ne comprends pas.
It's no use coming. C'est inutile de venir.
I'd rather see it. J'aimerais mieux le voir.
Is there ? Y a-t-il ?
I am not reading. Je ne lis pas.
Give me. Donnez-moi.
Wait for me. Attendez-moi.
This exercise, complementary to 13, must be severely re-
stricted to approved and previously assimilated bilingual
equivalents. On no account should units be given which have
not previously been seen and studied. The English unit must
be the exterior cue, suggesting the whole of the French equiva-
lent unit. The non-observance of this principle converts this
exercise into that difficult and advanced form of work ex-
emplified by Exercise 42.
15. Giving known French equivalents of certain units of
other languages than English — e.g. German or Latin.
(Intermediate and advanced stages.)
Example :
Teacher Pupil
Heute. Aujourd'hui.
Schon. Beau.
Ich bin gekommen. Je suis venu.
Ich weiss nicht. Je ne sais pas.
Es ist nicht. Ce n'est pas.
An interesting variation of 14, strengthening and confirming
the semantic associations. In view of the fact that French is
212 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
(generally) the first foreign language studied in English schools
this type of exercise will be of comparatively rare occurrence
in the teaching of French. It will probably be found more
effective as a feature of the German and Latin courses.
16. The teacher to pronounce various sounds ; the pupil
to call out their respective numbers as he does so.
(Elementary stage.)
Example :
Teacher Pupil
[e] French, No. 2.
[si] English, No. 13,
[a] French, No. 14.
Etc. Etc.
A very practical and effective method for developing the
auditive perception.
17. The teacher to pronounce various sounds ; the pupil
to point out each one on the phonetic chart as he
does so. (Elementary stage.)
A variation of 16. Calculated to co-ordinate the pupil's
auditive and visual perceptions by utilizing the principle of
spatialization.
18. Converting foreign units into another etymological
form. (Intermediate and advanced stages.)
Example :
Convert the following past participles into the corresponding
infinitives : alU, eu, ouvert, regu, donne, descendu, fini, mis,
compris, su.
Convert the following singulars into their corresponding
plurals : le crayon, mon livre, lafenHre, le livre noir, son cahier,
leur nam, une plume, une grande chambre, voire devoir.
Convert the following adjectives into adverbs: facile, lent,
hon, convenable, mauvais, difficile.
Convert the following examples of the present tense into the
past indefinite tense : je prends, je vois, je regois, je suis, je
viens, il marche, il icoute, il met, vous sortez, vous allez.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 213
One of the best manners of inculcating the principles of
etymology. A favourite exercise of many modem methods.
The above examples are shown in orthographic script, but this
type of exercise should first be presented in phonetic form. The
same remark applies to most of the following exercises.
19. Replacing dashes by words. (Intermediate and ad-
vanced stages.)
Eamrvple :
Replace each dash by an appropriate word :
Venez — .
— est-il aU^.
Dites — de .
H va souvent — Frtmce.
Je ne — pas demain.
Je ne le lui ai pas — .
An interesting exercise capable of almost infinite gradation
from the easiest to the most difiBcult degrees. If so designed
that the completed sentences are identical with models previ-
ously catenized, the exercise will be of the mechanical order,
and will serve to inculcate still further the primary matter of
the microcosm. If, on the other hand, the resultant sentences
constitute original unseens, the exercise will serve as a means
of producing secondary matter.
Exercises of this type may be differentiated and specialized
by confining each to some particular point of semantic or
ergonic importance.
20. Completing imfinished sentences. (Intermediate and
advanced stages.)
Example :
Complete the following sentences :
II m'est impossible .
Poxirquoi n'avez vous . . .
Donnez m'en . . .
Je les ai vus . . .
Je I'aurai . . .
214 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Je suis ici depuis . . .
. parce que la porte est ouverte.
. rest^ chez moi.
. n'est pas venue.
. si vous I'aimez, oui ou non.
. qui est venu ici.
. que j'ai mis ici.
A type of exercise similar to 19, but leaving greater scope to
the ingenuity of the pupil. If the completed sentences con-
stitute matter of the secondary order, this work may be con-
sidered as Limited Composition and will pave the way to Free
Composition. The remarks made concerning Exercise 19 are
here of equal application.
21. Simplification of developed sentences. (Intermediate
and advanced stages.)
Example :
Strike out all the units in the following sentences which are
not essential to ergonic completeness :
Les autres sont venus tout de suite.
Le livre rouge est sur I'autre table.
Vous en trouverez plusieurs dans le premier tiroir.
La lettre que j'ai re9ue hier m'a 6t6 envoy^e par un ami.
C'est trop grand et pas du tout beau.
An exercise in disintegration serving among other things to
call the pupil's attention to the semantic and ergonic values of
various units.
22. Composing simple substitution tables. (Intermediate
and advanced stages.)
Example :
Develop each of these sentences into a simple substitution
table by replacing the unit enclosed between the vertical lines by
appropriate ergonic equivalents :
Je le I donne | k mon ami.
Je I suis ici I depuis trois jours.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 215
lis I venaient ici | tous les jours.
Je I peux I venir ici.
Oil avez-vous | vu | mon livre ?
One of the soundest and simplest methods of converting
primary into secondary matter.
23. Composing compoimd substitution tables, (Inter-
mediate and advanced stages.)
Eccample :
Develop each of these sentences into a compound substitution
table by replacing the units enclosed between vertical lines by
appropriate ergonic equivalents. The resultant sentences need
not be of ideal semantic value. If it is found that a given unit
cannot be replaced by any other, the unit may be underlined
and left.
Je ne peux pas I venir ici | demain.,
J'ai vu I trois I Uvres I sur | la table.
Je suis I ici I depuis trois I jours.
H I me I r I a I donne.
This is a developed form of Exercise 22, and will give play to
the pupil's ingenuity and power of research and adaptation.
24. Composing ergonic (or complex substitution) tables.
(Intermediate and advanced stages.)
Example :
Form a table showing the ergonic relations of the units con-
tained in the following sentences :
II prend le livre.
E le prend.
n prendra la pltmie.
Quelqu'un la prendra.
EUe ne prenait pas les livres.
n pent prendre quelque chose.
H ne doit pas prendre cela.
EUe a pris son parapluie.
216 STUDY AND TEACHING OP LANGUAGES
II aura pris sa lettre.
II ne veut pas les prendre.
Mon ami ne doit pas la prendre.
The exercise may be performed by the use of the ergonic
chart, using slips and pins, or may be worked out at home on
paper.
25. Finding French sjTionyms of French imits. (Inter-
mediate and advanced stages.)
Example :
Find imits (monologs or polylogs) having the same or nearly
the same semantic value as the following :
Ilfaut ; dois-je ; joli ; obscur ; gens ; erreur ; je voudrais ;
sous ; sur le plancher ; penser que ; essayer de ; de
nouveau ; quelque chose d" autre ; tant soit peu ; com-
pletement ; quoique ; se rappeler.
A useful variety of recapitulation work for the more ad-
vanced stages.
26. Expressing the sense of a given sentence in other words,
(Advanced stage.)
Example :
Express in other words the meaning conveyed in each of the
following sentences :
Veuillez entrer. Je suis ici depuis trois jours. A qui
est ce litre ? Qa ne me fait rien. II me faut de V argent.
Cela ne vous ferait-il rien de venir ici ? Je tiens par-
ticulierement a lefaire. Je me vois obligS de V accepter.
Similar to Exercise 25, but of a more advanced tj^e.
27. Classifying units according to their ergonic value.
(Intermediate and advanced stages.)
Example :
Classify the following imits according to the ergonic categories
to which they belong :
Aujourd'hui. Je. Venir. Sur la table. Parlerais. Pendant
quinze jours. Recevoir. Lentement. Verra. Pendant
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 217
les vacances. II. Demain. A Londres. Viendrai. Trop
grand. Pris. Souvent. Le semaine prochaine. D'une
autre maniere. Ce que je veux.
This is a form of analysis perfectly correlated to the various
other forms of ergonic work suggested in these pages.
28. Conjugating verbs, (Intermediate and advanced
stages.)
Example :
Conjugate the following verbs in all their moods, tenses, and
persons :
Dormer, finir, recevoir, vendre, itre, avoir, venir, aller,
se lever.
A classical but none the less useful form of work especially
dming the later stages.
29. Declining pronoims. (Intermediate stage.)
Example :
Decline the following pronouns according to their case :
Je, tu, il, eUe, rums, vous, ils, elles.
An etymological exercise limited (in French) to the above
examples.
30. Answering questions. (Intermediate and advanced
stages.)
Example :
Answer the following questions :
En quoi est faite une table ?
Quelle heure est-il maintenant ?
£tes-vous alle faire une promenade hier ?
Avec quoi coupe-t-on ?
Quelle distance y a-t-il d'ici k la gare ?
Quel est le nom de la ville que vous habitez ?
Quelle langue parle-t-on en Espagne ?
Another example of limited composition in a very easy form.
The student should recognize the fact that the question itself
supplies most of the imits required in the answer.
218 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
81. Forming suitable questions for given answers. (Inter-
mediate stage.)
Example :
Form questions to which the following sentences are
answers :
Je suis venu a deux heures.
II est all6 k Londres.
C'est im livre rouge.
Oui, il est grand.
J'y suis rest^ pendant deux heiwes.
Avec un couteau on coupe.
Complementary to Exercise 30.
32. Coikverting affirmative sentences into the negative form.
(Intermediate stage.)
Example :
Convert the following sentences into the negative :
Je lis.
J'ecris la lettre.
J'ai vu mon ami.
Je suis alI6 a la gare.
Je peux venir ici.
Venez ici.
Prenez-le.
A simple method of deriving secondary matter. This exer-
cise may be preceded in the early portion of the intermediate
stage by one in which negative sentences are converted into
affirmatives.
33. Converting positive sentences into their interrogative
form. (Intermediate stage.)
Example :
Convert the following sentences into the interrogative,
avoiding as far as possible the use of est-ce que : ,
C'est un livre.
Vous parlez fran9ais,
AN roEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 219
II comprenait.
Vous le Im avez donn6.
Je le prends.
Mon frere est ici.
Le plafond est blanc.
A very necessary exercise for students of French and English,
in which the formation of the interrogative presents a certain
degree of difficulty.
34. Converting positive sentences into the interrogative-
negative form. (Intermediate stage.)
Example :
Convert the following sentences into their interrogative-
negative form :
Vous I'aimez.
n est venu.
Vous I'avez fait.
Mon fr^re est all^ a Paris.
Vous viendrez plus tot.
Les autres ne les prennent pas.
An extension of Exercises 82 and 33.
35. Converting direct into indirect questions. (Interme-
diate stage.)
Example :
Convert the following direct into indirect questions :
Vient-il ?
fites-vous pret ?
Oil aJlez-vous ?
Que dit-il ?
Quand viendra-t-il ?
Combien en avez-vous pris ?
Qui est-ce qui a fait ga ?
A practical manner of showing the connexion between the
interrogatives and connectives.
220 STUDY AND TEACfflNG OF LANGUAGES
36. Replacing nouns by pronouns. (Intennediate stage.)
Eceample :
Replace the words printed in italics by appropriate pronouns.
Je prends le livre.
Je vois la plume.
II derit la lettre.
II boit du cafi.
Je donne le livre d monfrere.
Monfrere me donne des litres.
MM. A et B. envoient Us lettres a mes amis,
A very necessary exercise in word-order.
37. Supplying verbs either in the indicative or subjunctive
moods. (Intermediate and advanced stages.)
Example :
Replace the dashes by a verb in the indicative or in the
subjunctive moods as the case may be :
II pense que je — .
II faut que je — .
Je crois qu'il — .
Je ne crois pas qu'il —
II est dommage qu'il — .
Je veux que vous — .
J'esp^re que vous — .
Je le ferai h moins qu'il ne — .
A practical method of inculcating the use of the subjunctive
mood.
38. Classifying previously seen monosyllabic words on a
phonetic basis. (Intermediate stage.)
Example :
Classify the following words into sixteen classes according to
the phonetic vowel contained in each :
Main, veux, une, bout, neuf, plein, vieux,clef, mal, autre,
eu, un, fais, rose, comme, bon, si, elle, place, beau, me,
vent, mais, bonne, pas, tdt, oeufs, vin, gai, poche, bos, ne,
venu, blanc, jouer, laid, vie, bras, ceil, bain, aui, nez.
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 221
chose, brun, livre, ou, table, homme, soif, pret, crois,
train, age, en, chez, jaune, sain, qui, rue, long, pomme,
le, mieux, pris, tres, feuille, ouest, double, haut, ton,
quinze, cent, que, ville, vous, deux, jeune, douze, plume.
A form of exercise to be used a short time after the introduc-
tion of the orthographic script. If the list is sufficiently long
this will be an excellent method of teaching orthoepy.
39. Composing matter in French in the form of a conversa-
tion with the teacher. (Advanced stage.)
This starts as an oral variant of Exercise 30, but develops
gradually into a fluent use of the spoken language.
40. Composing matter in the foreign language in order to
illustrate the ergonic and semantic functions of
various units. (Intermediate and advanced stages.)
Example :
Compose sentences in order to demonstrate the ergonic and
semantic functions of the following units :
D'autre, fasse, il y a, si, lorsque, faut-il, celui, plus, encore,
mercredi, laisse, souvent, seul, comme, eux, man, jusqu'd
ce que.
This may be differentiated into two separate types of exercise,
one treating the purely ergonic and the other the semantic
fimctions of units. In the former case the sentence will show
whether the student understands the formal function of the
unit ; in the latter whether he appreciates the meanings. In
the latter case especially, this exercise is a rather advanced
stage of composition.
41. Expressing in English ideas supplied by a French text.
(Intermediate and advanced stages.)
Example :
Express the following sentences by more or less approximate
English equivalents :
Je n'en suis pas partisan.
Je sais pertinemment qu'il est venu.
222 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Je n'y tiens pas beaucoup.
Je tiens particuli^rement a le faire.
Quand mSme il serait venu, je ne I'aurais pas vu.
De quoi vous occupez-vous ?
Cela ne vous ferait-il rien d'ouvrir la porte ?
Je ne vous en prive pas ?
The above examples are only suitable for the advanced
stage. This type of exercise, however, may be graduated
from the easiest to the most difficult degrees. Among other
qualities it constitutes a sound reagent against habits
of so-called ' literal translation ' and semantic imprecision in
general.
42. Expressing in French ideas suggested by an English
text. (Intermediate and advanced stages.)
Example :
Express the following ideas more or leas approximately in
French :
For some reason or other.
That's one for you !
I have often wondered.
I haven't been there for three years.
I'm particularly anxious to know.
As in the case of Exercise 41, we have only given examples of
the most advanced order.
48. Subconscious comprehension. (Elementary, inter-
mediate, and advanced stages.)
Detailed examples of this type of exercise have already been
given in Section 2S.
44. Free composition. (Advanced stage.)
Example :
Write a description (not exceeding 250 words in length) of
the town in which you live.
It bannot too often be repeated that free composition in the
AN IDEAL STANDARD PROGRAMME 228
foreign language is the worst possible method for acquiring fresh
material. The sole object of this form of exercise should be to
utilize previously assimilated primary matter and the secondary
matter which can be legitimately derived from it. If certain
ideas cannot be expressed in French without inventing unseen
forms, such ideas must not be expressed at all ; they should
be abandoned, or replaced by ideas which can be expressed by
means of known and authentic units.
45. Answering (in English) questions based on the lexi-
cological theories. (Elementary, intermediate, and
advanced stages.)
Mixed examples of such questions :
Describe the sound [a].
What sort of sound is represented by a in lady ?
Explain the mistakes generally made by a Frenchman in
pronouncing the word worthy.
By what letter or letters do we generally represent in our
ordinary spelling the English sounds [e], [ei] , [oi], [z] ?
What sound-values are generally given to the following
letters or combinations of letters in English orthography :
a, alk, er, th, igh, ea ?
What orthographic modification is made to the verb in
order to form the regular preterite ?
Draw up a Ust of the semantic varieties of the verb
get.
What is the place in the sentence of the adverb
46. Re-translation. (Advanced stage.)
The student will choose, or the teacher will choose for him, a
short passage from an authentic French text. He will translate
it into English to the best of his ability ; the teacher will read
the result and suggest corrections and modifications. The next
day the student will translate the passage back into French.
On its completion he will compare the result with the original,
make the necessary corrections, and repeat the operation until
the re-translation is word perfect.
224 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
47. The missing-word exercise. (Advanced stage.)
As a modification of the preceding exercise and with a view
to facilitating it, the student, after translating the text into
English, will make a fresh copy of the French original, replacing,
however, a certain number of imits by blank spaces. The next
day, instead of retranslating the Enghsh text back into French
as suggested in the preceding exercise, he will merely fill in to
the best of his ability the blank spaces. After two or three
efforts he will be prepared to perform Exercise 46 in its
integrity.
PART VI
SPECIAL PROGRAMMES
Section 26.— In that part of this book devoted to the Preluninary
Factors of Linguistic Pedagogy, we have seen that no one pro-
gramme can possibly be ideally suitable for all classes of students ;
hence, in addition to the Standard Programme that we have just
described, we must be prepared to draw up Special Programmes.
Limited Programmes of various types are designed to meet the
special requirements of those whose aim is less than the four
aspects of a given language.
Limited Programmes
The Ideal Standard Programme assumes the pupils to be
school-children without any previous knowledge of the foreign
language.
All important variations from this may be considered as
Special Programmes. The most suitable variations to meet
special cases can only be determined by a reference to the
preliminary factors of linguistic pedagogy outlined in Part III.
We may first consider programmes suitable for students whose
ultimate aim is less than the four aspects of a given language
(i.e. the active and passive uses of both the oral and written
forms).
In this respect twelve classes of aims are conceivable. All
but two of these (Nos. 7 and 8) are more or less of the freak
order and hardly worthy of any consideration from those whose
endeavours are tq^ place the study of language on a scientific
basis. We will nevertheless examine the special requirements
of the twelve classes of students and append a few comments.
1. Those whose sole aim is to understand the language when
written. Under this heading come those students who study
the language in order to be able to acquaint themselves with
the contents of their foreign correspondence or to read foreign
p 225
226 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
books of literary or of scientific value of which no translation
exists.
The elementary stage will be confined to the theories of
etymology, semantics, and ergonics. No phonetic instruction
whatever will be given. The second stage will consist of the
study of the microcosm. All the exercises will be based on the
passive aspect of the language and will be confined to translating
into English isolated units and texts.
The third stage will be characterized by the same
features. The end will be considered achieved when pro-
ficiency has been attained in the comprehension of foreign
texts.
2. Those whose sole aim is to understand the language when
spoken. It is just conceivable that some persons may be
so exceptionally placed that such knowledge will tneet the
particular end they have in view. It will at least enable
them to become auditors of lectures, speeches, and dramatic
performances.
The entire programme may consist almost exclusively of ja
course of exercises in subconscious comprehension.
3. Those whose sole aim is to speak the language. The only
conceivable case would be that of the traveller or tourist desirous
of expressing his more inmiediate wants when visiting the
foreign country.
The programme would consist of causing the student to learn
by heart the necessarily limited number of useful sentences
-and minor units requisite for his wants.
4. Those whose sole aim is to write the language. The only
conceivable case would be that of a person obliged to com-
municate with foreign correspondents ignorant of his language.
In order to attain the desired limited end, the student, needless
to say, will be obliged to acquire the capacity which is the ainfi
of class 1. The programme will therefore be a mere extension
of that outlined for class 1, but will at the same time embrace
the active aspect of written work. Oral memorizing will be
replaced by graphic memorizing. The student instead of
repeating will xiorite a given sentence the given number of times
on a given number of separate occasions.
SPECIAL PROGRAMMES 227
5. Those whose aims are to understand the language when
spoken and written. Such cases will merely be the combination
of the requirements of classes 2 and 4.
6. Those whose aims are to speak and to write the language.
Such cases will merely be the combination of classes 3 and 4.
7. Those whose aims are to read and write the language. This
is a case of far more frequent occurrence. Few students of
Latin or Greek have any other aims than these. From their
very nature, the dead languages are of Hterary and not of
colloquial interest. In the case of living languages we may cite
the case of correspondence clerks whose sole aim is generally
to understand and to answer letters received from foreign
correspondents.
The programme will be essentially that of the Standard
Programme, except that little or no attention will be paid
to the ^oral aspect of language. The^ student will either not
pronounce any units at all or will use a fancy pronunciation
of his own.
No economy of time will be effected by the exclusion of the
oral form ; on the contrary, the student will voluntarily deprive
himself of that most powerful instrument of study — viz. his
power of auditive perception and association. As a matter of
fact, those teachers and students who are loudest in their de-
preciation of the phonetic aspect of language wiU never consent
to forgo the use of the spoken word.
8. Those whose aim, is to speak the language and to understand^
the spoken language. This combination of classes 2 and 3 is of
most frequent occurrence. Probably the majority of those who
study Oriental languages have no further aim in view ; indeed
in the case of many of such languages the colloquial and literary
forms differ to such an extent that they must be considered as
entirely different languages the simultaneous study of which
would entail needless confusion and difiBculty.
If the student is illiterate he will have to forgo all ^the ad-
vantages of script forms ; if he is not, the programme to be
adopted will be identical with the Standard Programme, except
for the exclusion of the traditional form of spelling. The spoken
language will be represented graphically by means of a suitable
228 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
phonetic alphabet without any subsequent reduction to classical
writing.
9. Those whose aim embraces all but the understanding of the
written language.
10. Those whose aim embraces all but the understanding of the
spoken language. Both classes 9 and 10 are almost inconceiv-
able cases and we may disiniss them from our attention.
11. Those whose aim embraces all but the speaking of the
language.
12. Those whose aim embraces all but the writing of the language.
Classes 11 and 12 are rare but conceivable cases. For the sake
of economy of effort and of time the student should include
the fourth aspect, and then work according to the Standard
Programme.
Section 87.— A Documentary Programme is designed to meet the
special requirements of those whose aim is not the assimilation
of a language in any or all of its aspects, but a documentary
knowledge only.
We must provide for students who are desirous not of assimi-
lating the units of the language with a view to making any
natural or direct use of them, but of gaining a thorough theo-
retical knowledge of its mechanism, morphological, ergonic,
and semantic.
Their incentive may be one of pure cmriosity ; they are
interested in a given language and want to look into it to see
how it works.
Or they may have a more definite end in view. Students of
lexicology in the abstract require a sufficient knowledge of some
dozen languages in order to obtain the documentation necessary
for them to pursue their studies or researches.
Few students of phonetics would wish to limit themselves to
the study of the sounds of their own language ; their aim is
to master as many sounds as possible in order to be able to
compare them and discover the laws that determine their
relations. There are certain aspects of the science of
phonetics bound up with the ergonic and semantic aspects of
language ; if the phonetician keep himself strictly within
SPECIAL PROGRAMMES 229
the limits of his particular science, many facts of the utmost
importance will escape his attention, ignorance of which facts
will perhaps lead him to false conclusions. The student of
phonetics must have access to a number of languages and acquire
a knowledge, if only superficial, of their mechanism.
The student of semantics must also have a certain knowledge
of a number of languages ; indeed this branch of knowledge from
its very character is a multilingual study. He cannot spare
the time to assimilate from one to a dozen foreign languages ;
what he requires is an adequate documentation concerning
them.
The student of ergonics is in precisely the same situation. He
cannot determine, except by guesswork, the Varied phenomena
of function until he has examined at first hand examples culled
from dozens of languages and dialects. Life is too short to
attempt to assimilate all these ; it is sufficient to acquire for
each language which may be of utility a certain set of data
with which to work.
Our Standard Programme must be considerably modified
to suit the needs of such students as these. From the very
fact that they are students and research workers in the field of
theoretical lexicology, we must conclude that they require no
preparatory training ; for them there need be no preliminary
stage.
The all-important stage will be the microcosmic, and the all-
important process of study will be mere cognition. The seeker
of documentation need neither catenize nor spend his time
in assimilating semantic values. All that he asks for is the
requisite number of ergonic lists and tables, including the ergonic
chart of the language, adequate English translations of each
unit, and a concise list of ' directions for use.'
The lessons we give him will consist of explanations ; the
exercises he writes out will merely serve to show whether
he has understood our explanations and is able to apply
them.
A documentary course may often profitably serve as an intro-
duction to the assimilatoryj course. Adult pupils for whom
the study of language for its own sake has a certain fascination
230 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
are justified in considering a thorough documentary knowledge
of its microcosm as a necessary preliminary stage of their study.
With their curiosity satisfied as to the number and nature of
the sounds, the nature of its ergonic categories and their place
on the chart, and the semantic peculiarities of its etymons, they
would be prepared by means of the forty odd types of exercises
suggested in these pages to convert such documentary know-
ledge into assimilated knowledge.
Section 88.— Corrective Programmes are designed to meet the special
requirements of those who have previously studied the language
in so disproportionate a manner that one or more of the four
aspects has, or have been, totally or partially neglected, or of
those who have previously studied the language in so defective
a manner that the unsound knowledge so acquired will have to
be converted into sound knowledge.
We now have to meet the case of students who have previously
acquired certain notions of the foreign language and who are
desirous either of increasing their limited stock of knowledge
or of ridding themselves of vicious habits due to defective or
disproportionate study.
If the student frankly recognizes the fact that his previous
study has been conducted on a defective basis, if he is conscious
of his failings, and sees clearly what is lacking, it will be relatively
easy to deal with him.
If, on the other hand, he is very satisfied with himself, is not
prepared to acknowledge any other defects than that of a
limited vocabulary, and is unwilling that we should extirpate
the grave flaws which stand as a barrier between his present
attainments and the perfection toward which it is his aim to
rise, then our task will be an almost impossible one. This type
of student is by no means uncommon.
We can only strive to change his views concerning himself and
prove to him with all the data at our disposal that with regard
to certain fundamentals he is in a state of absolute ignoranccj
that he must set out to develop his faculties of study, and
possibly also mileam and forget much that he has learnt.
If he is unwilling to be convinced, scientific methods of study
SPECIAL PROGRAMMES 231
are not for him, and the conscientious teacher, if he can afford
it, must refer the recalcitrant pupU to some language quack who
will teach the pupil not what he ought to learn, but what he
wants to learn.
We shall revert to this aspect of the question in the section
entitled " The Student."
Just as there are twelve categories of students whose aims
fall short of the complete course for which the Standard Pro-
gramme is designed, so we find twelve similar categories of
students whose previous study has been defective.
There are those who can understand what they read but not
what they hear ; those who can speak but not write ; others
who understand what they hear but cannot speak ; others who
can understand the written and spoken language but who can
make no active use of either, etc., etc.
The most frequent case, indeed the only one of which we pro-
pose to treat, is that in which the student has already attained
considerable proficiency in reading. His written work is very
defective, his speech far worse, and he is incapable of under-
standing anything we say to him unless we deliver ourselves
monolog by monolog with a pronunciation distorted so as to
conform itself to his foreign ear.
Let us note, by the way, that unless we perform this act of
linguistic sacrilege, he will accuse us of speaking our own
language badly, and will protest against our abnormally rapid
and indistinct enunciation of our native tongue.
Presuming, however, a willing pupil, we may take him in
hand firmly and with authority, and treat him to a special
corrective progranune in order to convert his bad habits into
good ones and his defective units into sound ones.
We must start by submitting him to a searching and com-
prehensive examination in order to see how much he knows,
to what extent his lexicological knowledge is superficial or
defective.
We shall present him with a list of some hundreds of questions
and shall request him to answer them in writing.
The following rough hst will show the most useful types of
question to be asked of the French student of English. We
232 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
will add in each case the sort of answers which must, alas,
often be expected.
Phonetics
Questions
1. Comment prononce-t-on
la voyelle dans cut ?
2. — et la voyelle dans ieaue ?
3. — et la voyelle dans man ?
4. Comment prononce-t-on
les mots take et home ?
5. Quelle est la prononcia-
tion usuelle de will et de
can ?
6. Quelle est la difference
entre IV frangais et IV anglais ?
7. Decrivez le son de th
dans thin.
8. Quelle est la difference
entre le mot anglais fort et le
mot frangais fort an point de
vue de la prononciation ?
Possible Answers
1. A peu pr^s comme eu.
2. Comme i en frangais.
3. Comme a en frangais.
4. Comme t^k et h6m.
5. Comme ouile et canne.
6. LV anglais doit 6tre roul6
tr^s fortement.
7. C'est un son qui res-
semble as on k t fortement
aspire.
8. En anglais on prononce
let; en frangais on ne le pro-
nonce pas.
Etymology
1. Comment forme-t-on dans 1. En y ajoutant d ou ed.
la langue parlee le participe
passe des verbes r^guliers ?
2. Comment forme - 1 - on
dans la langue parlee le pluriel
des substantifs reguliers ?
Quand le mot finit par y, on
prononce ied.
2. En y ajoutant s on es.
Quand le mot finit par y, on
prononce ies.
Semantics and Ergonics
Traduire en anglais :
1 . Vient-il ? 1 . Comes he ? Do he comes ?
2. Je J'ai vu hier. 2. I have seen him yester-
day.
SPECIAL PROGRAMMES
288
8. n ira ^ Londres.
4. Je le verrai quand il
viendra.
5. Dites a votre ami qu'il
vienne.
6. Prenez son crayon et sa
plume.
7. Je ne m'en souviens pas.
8. Qui voyez-vous ?
Qui est-ce qui vous voit ?
9. Sans rien faire.
10. Quelqu'im est venu.
11. II veut le faire.
12. Votre ami ne I'a-t-il pas ?
13. Je me rejouis.
14. Je vais chercher mon
chapeau.
15. Bonjour, monsieur, com-
naent allez-vous ?
16. Je me demande ce que
e'est.
17. II m'est impossible de
I'attendre.
18. Je suis ici depuis quinze
jours.
Repondre aux questions suivantes
19. Conunent doit-on rendre
en frangais le mot will ?
20. Comment rend-on en
anglais Yimparfait frangais ?
21. Comment exprime-t-on
le pronom indefini on ?
22. Quelle est la difference
essentieUe entre some et any ?
23. Quelle est la fonction du
pajpticipe present anglais ?
3. He shall go in London.
4. I shall see him when he
shall come.
5. Say {ou Tell to) your
friend that he comes.
6. Take his pencil and her
pen.
7. I remember not me of it.
8. Whom see you ?
Who sees you ?
9. Without to do nothing.
10. Anybody is come.
11. He will make it.
12. Has not your friend it ?
13. I rejoice.
14. I go to search {or seek)
my hat.
15. Good-day, sir, how do
you do ?
16. I ask me what is it.
17. It is to me impossible to
wait him.
18. I am here since fifteen
days.
19. Par vouloir.
20. Par Vimparfait anglais.
21. Par one.
22. Some s'emploie dans les
phrases affirmatives et any
dans tous les autres cas.
23. Pour exprimer qu'on
fait quelque chose maintenant.
234 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
24. Quand doit-on employer 24. Pour rendre le pass6
le pr^t^rit anglais (I came, I ddfini ou I'imparfait.
gave, etc.) ?
25. Comment dirait-on en 25. On dirait still a little ou
anglais encore un pen ? (dans les phrases negatives)
yet a little.
Lest it be thought that the ' possible answers ' suggested
above constitute a gross exaggeration of the case, the writer
here affirms that the above are typical of the answers he has
received from a majority of adult French students during a
period of sixteen years.
Obviously we do not suggest that every student who has previ-
ously studied English on defective lines will invariably commit
every one of the absurdities quoted above. According to the
number and the nature of the errors, the teacher must determine
the degree and extent of the corrective course.
In order that the pupil may focus his entire attention on one
thing at a time, each of the parts of which the course is made
up must be segregated from the others. A sound, even if
superficial, knowledge of the laws of lexicology will be essential.
To this end the student must be provided with an adequate
quantity of literature on the subject, written in his own
language. The style should be simple and chatty, accom-
panied by a number of the most characteristic and striking
examples. To each section and chapter should be appended
a long questionnaire to ensure the perfect assimilation of the
matter so read. Indeed the corrective coiu'se may well take
the form of a long series of concise questions with their appro-
priate answers, conceived somewhat on the lines of the test
questions given above. The student should read each question
carefully and compare it with the answer. At the end of each
page he should go over the list again, both to make sure that
he has understood and to give himself a further opportunity of
assimilating the facts stated therein.
He should then endeavour to reproduce the answers in writing,
comparing the result with the matter given in his book. By
learning and assimilating the correct answers to, say, twenty-
SPECIAL PROGRAMMES 235
five questions per day, with a daily recapitulation of all the
previous work, the student in the course of a few weeks will
have converted the greater part of his imsound into sound
knowledge. This work can, of course, be performed at home ;
to a large extent the teacher will be replaced by the book.
The function of the teacher will be to supplement the informa-
tion given by the book and to furnish additional examples
whefe necessary.
Furthermore, the teacher having, by means of the answers to
the tests, ascertained the student's weaker points, he will give
special attention to these, and will successively explain in a
clear maimer and illustrate by striking examples the various
lexicological theories. If the pupil's weak point is pronimcia-
tion he must take a course of systematic pronunciation
exercises and work intensively at phonetic transcription. If
the pupil's weak point is semantics he must take a course of
systematic semantic exercises. If his weak point is ergonics,
a special course of ergonics, including constant use of the
ergonic chart, will eventually enable him to overcome his
difficulties.
Most of the exercises enumerated in the previous section will
be of great utility ; the teacher in face of so extensive a choice
of instruments must select those which are the most likely to
bring about the required reforms.
Never during the corrective course should the student be
encouraged or even allowed to speak his own broken jargon.
He will probably want to- do so, and may urge that
' practice makes perfect,' etc., etc. The teacher may reply
that practice in broken English indeed does result in perfect
broken English, and that as the aim of the student is precisely
to eradicate it, and not to foster and to encourage it, he must
do his best to let it become atrophied by disuse. It will be
time to talk about conversing in English when the student has
acquired a sufficient stock of healthy units to enable him to
do so without recourse to the broken dialect which it is their
joint aim to extirpate.
Nor should the student be encouraged to do any free written
composition ; in short, all the forms of exercise appertaining to
286 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
the advanced stage of the Standard Programme should be
shimned during the corrective course.
While the proportion of mistakes exceeds 10 per cent, no
good purpose can be served by giving the student oppor-
tunities of perpetrating blunders or ' abnormalities ' on this
scale.
A mistake is always ' abnormal,' and always tends to show
that there has been a fault in method. To say that a given
student makes a number of mistakes in his work is equivalent
to saying that his work is too difficult for him and that he is
being crammed. The object of the correction course is not to
reduce the element of error successively from 50 per cent, to
40 per cent, to 30 per cent, and so on, but so to work
during a given period that the student shall have formed an
entirely new conception of language and its study based, not
on eventual fluency and eventual freedom from error, but on
the principle of perfect correctness and perfect fluency from
the start.
One of the points on which we must be the most insistent is
the necessity for simple escpression. The average adult student
imagines that his first foreign compositions will have all the
richness of expression that characterizes his compositions in
his native tongue. Forgetting that his proficiency in casting
his thoughts in the mould of his own language is the result of
years of daily practice, he thinks to express these same complex
and highly developed concepts in a language the lexicological
material of which he has not yet succeeded in assimilating a
fraction per cent.
He must be given to understand in the clearest and most
categoric of terms that he must perfectly assimilate a simple
and limited vocabulary in order to express simple thoughts,
that in proportion as his lexicological nucleus grows, so will he
be able to express more complex and more subtle phases of
thought. His first compositions must be couched in the lan-
guage of the simplest minds ; he can no more aspire toward
style and beauty of expression than he can hope to express the
complex facts of the higher mathematics without any notions
of elementary algebra.
SPECIAL PROGRAMMES 237
As the art student must learn to use the pencil before attempt-
mg the use of the brush, as the student of mathematics grapples
with simple equations before aspiring toward the calculus,
in short, as we all learn to walk before learning to run or to
perform gyrations on the tight rope, so also must the student
of language content himself during the early stages with the
expression of simple thou^its before attempting to vie with
the masters of foreign literature.
PART VII
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER
Section 29.— The first qualifications of the expert teacher are a know-
ledge of the foreign language and of the student's native tongue,
and the ability to organize the programme, to choose the
appropriate material and the most appropriate means of con-
veying and of inculcating it.
The first and most important qualification of the ideal
teacher is a thorough knowledge of both the foreign language
and the student's native tongue. We say the ' ideal ' teacher —
that is to say, one who is prepared to conduct the pupil from his
starting-point through the two preparatory stages and deep into
the third stage, treating all the aspects of the language en route.
We must not, however, lose sight of the possibihties of limited
programmes and of the help that may be afforded on special
points by teachers whose knowledge of the language is limited
to one or more of its aspects. Competent teachers exist who
only profess to give lessons in one particular aspect ; they have
specialized on this one aspect in connexion with many languages,
and being deeply specialized, the help that they can afford is
necessarily superior to that given by the ' general practitioner.'
The expert phonetician, with little or no lexicological know-
ledge other than that which comes immediately within his
special scope, is more quahfied to teach the pronunciation of
Russian, Urdu, or Arabic than native teachers of these languages
without such expert knowledge.
It is possible and perfectly feasible to learn the ergonic system
of a given language from one who is unversed in its phonetics
or semantics.
The qualification of the ' ideal ' teacher is not necessarily the
sine qua non of all teachers. It would be truer to say that all
teachers should possess in a perfect degree such qualifications
238
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 239
as enable them to teach the brsmch or aspect that they profess
to teach. We may have persons with special qualifications for
dealing with pupils in the preliminary stage ; others who are
in every way fitted to inculcate the microcosm of the second
stage ; others again who have specialized themselves for work
connected with the third stage.
As time goes on, and methods become]more and more perfect,
we shall probably witness a tendency toward specialization,
just as we have seen the advent of specialists in other professions
than that of pedagogy.
In the absence of any text-books or manuals setting" forth
any consistent schemes of programmes suitable -for various
types of students and their varied requirements, it is the
teacher himself who has to consider what course will have to
be pursued in different cases and to organize the programme
best adapted to each particular end.
A programme can only be carried out with success if it is con-
ceived in advance on systematic and proportional lines and
thoroughly organized in accordance with consistent principles.
The vocabulary must be chosen carefully, unit by unit ; there
must be a reason governing the selection of each and a reason
for presenting it at a given moment and not at another.
To the trained or expert teacher falls in most cases the re-
sponsibility of selecting from among the thousands of monologs
and the hundreds of thousands of polylogs those which are best
calculated to form the microcosm which will represent the
nucleus of the pupil's studies.
The haphazard principle of the ' sack ' will not do.
Many methods appear to have been composed on the ' sack '
principle. The author takes a sack and fills it with thousands
of slips of paper on each of which is inscribed a unit of the
vocabulary of the language he is going to teach. The sack is
well shaken up in order to prevent any possible chance of grada-
tion or logical succession. He then plunges his arm into the
sack and withdraws a handful of slips ; this handful constitutes
the first chapter of the book and is entitled " First Lesson."
The process is repeated xmtil the book is full, the remaining
nine-tenths of the slips are thrown away, and the sack is put on
240 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
one side against the day when the author will make up his mind
to apply the ' sack ' method to another language.
It is ridiculously obvious that the sack method of choosing
the matter is the wrong method, and yet time after time we
see method-writers making themselves obviously ridiculous by
adopting it. When the only qualification of an instructor is a
mere knowledge of the language that he proposes to teach, the
method of presenting the matter must necessarily be imsyste-
matic. Such methods may possibly lead to eventual success on
the part of the student, but such success cannot be attributed to
the instruction, but is attained in spite of him at the cost of a
terrible amount of wasted effort and misdirected energy.
The presentation of matter can only be considered systematic
when a definite selection is made in advance, when the instructor
is able to furnish a synopsis of the coiu-se of lessons he is about
to give, and moreover to adduce a reason why each unit of the
vocabulary should be presented at a given moment and not at
another.
Systematically presented matter and properly graduated
matter are convertible terms, for one implies the other.
There will be found to be five bases of gradation — ^that is to
say, five different considerations governing the choice of matter
and the order of presenting it. These, as we have seen, are :
(a) Frequency.
{b) Ergonic combination.
(c) Concreteness.
(d) Proportion.
(e) General Expediency.
The most difficult task of the method-maker is precisely the
choosing and graduating of the vocabulary in strict accordance
with these five considerations. The frequency principle, fascin-
ating as it is, must often be subordinated to the claims of ergonic
combination. Those two in their turn may have to be subordin-
ated to the pressing claims of concreteness, and even when the
best compromise has been made to satisfy the claims of these
three principles, we are still faced with the claims of proportion
and general expediency.
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 241
The normal programme should contain evenly distributed
portions of phonetics, ergonics, semantics, and orthography.
The only one of these aspects that must suffer if time is limited
is the last-named, for orthography, after all, is but the artificial
aspect of language. Some instructors teach so disproportion-
ately that they insist on perfection in the pronunciation of a
group of words — and then forget to give the meaning of them.
Another will spend hours in demonstrating the semantic or
ergonic peculiarities of a group of verb forms — and forget to
tell the student how to pronounce them.
In the case of Special Programmes the principle of proportion
is, however, entirely subordinated to other considerations. The
veteran who knows the language from end to end — without
being able to produce a single sound in it correctly ! — must be
treated to phonetics in the strongest possible doses, to the total
exclusion of every other aspect.
Proportion also must be observed in the active and passive
aspects of study. A course of lessons may be given of which
the result is to enable the student to understand the language
at sight or at hearing, but without advancing him one iota in
the extremely useful art of making himself understood. The
treatment shoidd be proportioned to the requirement ; the
general practitioner in the teaching profession, as in the medical
profession, should makeit his business to diagnose before treating.
The teacher who is particularly competent in one special
kind of teaching must not necessarily follow his accustomed
methods under all circumstances. He must adapt them to the
special needs of his pupils.
Instructors, like all other mortals, may suffer from absent-
mindedness ; it may be true — or it may not — ^that a learned
professor once wrote a grammar of the Katanga literary dialect
and forgot to inform his readers whether it contained any nouns.
It is certainly true that many writers of modem-language
manuals frequently forget to inform their readers whether the
language it purports to teach contains any sounds !
Neglect of the phonetic aspect of words, as the neglect of
the semantic or any other aspect of words, must result in dis-
proportionate work. If the object of the author is to produce
242 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
a specialized work on one particular aspect of the language,
all well and good, but more often than not we find serious
omissions arising, not out of design, but from sheer neglect
and the ignoring of the principle of proportion.
The most general omission is that of the phonetic aspect ;
the veteran student who declares, with a tone savouring of pride
and disdain, that the soionds of the language have no interest
for him, who skips every chapter on pronunciation, and who
cannot tell the difference between a high front vowel and the
glottal stop, will blush with shame if he so much as omits to dot
an i when writing the language of which he claims to be a master.
He is like a musician who knows everything about music except
the notes.
Not only does the expert teacher who is the architect of his
own method select the material that will go to make up the
microcosm, but to him often falls the duty of determining the
appropriate means by which each item is to be cognized by
the pupil and subsequently iuculcated. He has to decide at each
turn whether a given unit or group of units is to be semanticized
by material association, by translation, by definition, or whether
the meaning is to be gathered from the context.
He has to decide which units are to be treated as primary
and which as secondary matter.
His judgment must determine at what moments quantity is
to be sacrificed to quality, and vice versa. He has to deal with
the difficult problems entailed by a class containing pupils of all
degrees of intelligence, capacity, good will, and slackness. He
^ must so direct the various forms of mechanical drill that interest
is maintained ; in order to avoid monotony, and to prevent
such mechanical work from becoming tedious, he must devise a
constant series of new types of exercise, sacrificing no important
principle and never losing sight of the immediate and ultimate
end of any particular phase of work.
He has to determine the relative proportions of class teaching
and individual teaching. In order that a given lesson may
bear the maximum of fruit he must reinforce it and drive home
its conclusions by means of well-chosen homework. He must
at all times consider the good and evU results of contiguity and
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 243
other forms of association ; he must come to feel intuitively
at what moments two subjects of study should be segregated
in order to avoid confusion, or be associated in'order that each
may be contrasted with the other to their mutual advantage.
Moreover, it depends to a large extent on the teacher to make
the lessons represent an ever-changing source of interest and
novelty, of which each phase will contribute in the progressive
and sound building up, strengthening, and developing of the
nucleus.
Section 30.— Another function of the teacher is to furnish explana-
tions.
In addition to the choosing and presenting of matter, it comes
within the functions of the instructor to furnish explanations
concerning it. Without explanation the pupil can do little or
nothing ; a list of the most useful words and sentences, however
well chosen and graduated, is but the groundwork of the teach-
ing. In itself it is but a mass of matter without signification,
incapable of being assimilated until put into combination, and
supplemented by information respecting it.
The writer possesses rather a good book the object of which is
to teach Chinese. There is a large quantity of valuable material
in it ; there is reason to suppose that it is more or less graduated.
He is, however, unable to make the slightest use of it, because,
as far as he can see, there are no explanations in it. If there are
any, they are in Chinese, and as he does not understand that
language he is not able to decipher them.
Many instructors either give no explanations at all, or else
give them in the very language of which the student is presumed
to be ignorant.
Their object in so doing is to react against some of the vicious
tendencies, more especially those relating to bilingual conscious-
ness and illejitunate importation.
It may be said that the child learns his mother tongue without
any explanations, and that in order to follow the natural method
he and the adult must follow the same plan and dispense with
explanatory matter. This is, however, hardly a true statement
of the case ; for we shall see as a matter of fact that the child
244 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
does receive explanations during the process of learning his own
language. If these explanations do not take the form of rules,
equations, diagrams, and general advice, they are none the less
present in the form of object and context-lessons, in which the
meaning and the use of w^ords are demonstrated by gestures
and association of ideas. The meaning of the word dog is ex-
plained to him when we point to the animal in question and
pronounce the word dog.
Be it as it may, the adult requires explanations of some sort
or other, and we must recognize that he has a right to them and
that the withholding of them will retard his progress by many
months.
In order to distinguish clearly the difference between the
matter of the language itself and the explanations which may
accompany it in order to render possible its assimilation, we
shall speak of the former as the concrete and the latter as the
explanatory matter.
Some adults maintain that the concrete matter is sufficient
for them and that they prefer to discover for themselves the
explanation of the phenomena contained in it. You wdll hear
people recommend the plan of taking an easy novel in, let us
say, Italian, of starting at the first chapter, and forcing ourselves
to imderstand it. They say that the first pages will give us a
vague idea of what it is about, and that as we continue the
matter will become less and less vague ; we shall guess with more
and more success, and before we have reached the end of the
book it will be as easy to read as our own language.
They say that this process will enable us to dispense
with dictionary, grammar-book, and all other sources of
information.
The best refutation of this theory is to hand such a person
an easy book written in Russian or Arabic and to ask him to
demonstrate the method. He will at once confess his inability
to do so, saying that he must firs't learn the alphabet. But the
learning of the alphabet necessitates explanation ! Even the
child learning his mother tongue caimot learn the alphabet
without explanatory matter.
Our friend will concede that the learning of an alphabet indeed
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 245
requires explanatory matter, but will hold this to be an ex-
ceptional case, and will maiatain that, apart from this, the non-
explanatory principle still holds good. We may then give him
a book written in Hungarian ; here at least he will be able to
contemplate his own Latin characters. If he succeeds, by dint
of efforts worthy of Sherlock Holmes, in deciphering a word
here or there, that will represent his limit ; there will be no
progression from the unknown to the known ; he will have to
give it up.
The fact of the matter is that the method of immediate com-
prehension of written matter ab ovo is only possible when the
language is cognate with our own, or with one already learnt.
A Frenchman or any one knowing French can easily become
acquainted with Italian by the process of guessing the meaning
of the words which are already half familiar.
Not long ago an acquaintance of the writer's declared to
him that if he were furnished with explanations concerning the
mechanism of a given language he would lose all interest in it.
For him the charm lay in discovering the key to the various
problems without any outside aid. The fallacy (for this is
obviously a fallacy) consists in placing linguistic work on the
same footing as mathematics, chess, patience, jig-saw puzzles,
acrostics, or any other sort of intellectual problem-solving game.
Obviously all such amusements would lose their charm if some-
body were by our side and insisted on furnishing us with ready-
made solutions, for their sole interest lies in overcoming the
problems by our own unaided efforts.
But the normal study of language has nothing in common
with guessing competitions, however intellectual their nature.
To be perfectly consistent, such a person when travelling should
shim time-tables, maps, and signposts on the grounds that these
things furnish ready-made solutions to problems that he would
rather solve unaided.
" I have to go to Glasgow," he would say. " This presents a
number of interesting problems which I intend to solve by the
method of discovery. Time-tables exist, also maps, but I will
have none of them, nor will I follow the man from Cook's. I
have a pocket compass to guide me, and by its aid and that of
246 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
the sun and stars I ought to steer my course with sufficient
accuracy."
This method of discovery is the only one available when the
country is unmapped and the railway line non-existent ; it is
the only method when the language is one of those remote
tongues of which neither dictionary nor grammar has ever been
written. The study of French, however, like the journey to
Glasgow, is not an occasion to exercise one's faculties of ingenious
guessing, but one where the practical man should profit by all
the information which experts are only too ready to place at his
disposal.
The practical study of languages in the early stages has
nothing in common with chess problems. Rather should it be
placed in the same category as geography or history. A foreign
language is one of those things of which the ' directions for use '
should be carefully read and frequently consulted ; the ideal
'progranune of language- study is that which enables us to assimi-
late in the shortest possible time with the least effort th©-greatest
quantity of the most important matter. The method of dis-
covery is in flat contradiction to this principle, and he who
would use such a method may be likened to a deaf and dumb
man trying to find his way about the streets of a strange town.
This is no imaginary case. Very many language students,
especially those who are engaged at the same time in other
studies of a real problem-solving nature, think it a necessary
part of their work to discover what has already been discovered,
to explore regions that need no exploration.
Explanatory matter is, or ought to be, in the nature of in-
formation the object of which is to facilitate our efforts to
imitate the models which are set before us.
Its nature may be morphological, ergonic, or semantic — that
is]to say, it may deal specifically with form, function, or meaning.
Explanations may be of the descriptive or of the historical
order. In the practical study of language the descriptive aspect
alone is of any real value, for when we are learning a given
language we wish to know what its characteristics are and not
how they have become what they are.
As we have just mentioned, the function of explanation is to
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 247
facilitate the efforts of the student to imitate and to develop
with success the models which are set before him.
We must give him a great deal of phonetic information. His
auditive faculties have become so atrophied by disuse and by
the associations of the sounds of his own language that he will
be unable even to hear the sounds of the foreign language. An
Englishman to whom we pronounce the French [y] may pos-
sibly think that he hears his familiar English sound [u] ; the
Frenchman to whom we pronounce the English sound [6] will
be rnider the impression that he hears [s] or [t]. We must open
his ears by means of phonetic explanations. The imitative
faculties of the average student are also in a state of atrophy ;
in his infancy he could pick up new sounds by mere imitation ;
he can no longer do so, and as a result he produces sounds which
are vastly different from those which are required of him. We
must make him conscious of his organs of speech by means of
phonetic explanations.
It is generally not necessary to give much information con-
cerning orthography. Experience proves that the adult, at
any rate, picks up this branch with extraordinary rapidity and
accuracy. This is probably due to the great respect in which
he holds the traditional spelling and the intensive development
of his visual perceptive faculties. If the language (unlike
English or French) possesses a rational spelling system, a
short series of orthoepic explanations will be useful to him.
We may tell him that ei in German corresponds to the
sounds [ai], that gy in Hungarian invariably represents the
sound Q], that the Welsh II is the traditional way of ex-
pressing [1], etc.
Information concerning inflexions and other forms of mor-
phological change will be very useful at a certain moment.
There is no reason whatever for withholding the general laws
concerning the formation of the plural of regular English nouns
or of the English present or past participles. The student of
French (like the Frenchman himself) must be informed con-
Gaming the nature of the modification which various classes of
words undergo in order to change their ergonic values. What
has been taught for centuries under the name of accidence
248 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
(declension and conjugation) may still be taught, although more
in conformity with the principle of proportion.
It is of distinct utility to explain to the student th6 laws of
ergonics as applied to the language he is learning, to show in
what circumstances the subjunctive replaces the indicative, or
when the dative replace the accusative pronouns. By dint of
prolonged and totally unnecessary efforts, a good problem-solver
may discover the key to the ergonic mystery surrounding the
use of the twenty-four ' verbal particles ' in English ; a few
pages devoted to the rational explanation of these phenomena
will bring about the same result with a vast economy of time,
and the days and weeks gained thereby may be devoted to the
real business of language learning.
The explanations concerning the semantic aspect of words
are of enormous importance for time-saving purposes. Such
explanations constitute the chief raison d'Stre of the bilingual
dictionary. As a general rule it is profitable to explain to the
pupil the meaning or rather the meanings of each word that he
learns. If they are not explained, he will have to pick them
up himself, and experience proves that the foreigner is not an
adept at discovering the meanings of words by his own unaided
efforts, especially during the first stages of his study.
If we withhold information on this subject, the student, more
often than not will be content to associate the foreign word
with a word in his own language, and thenceforth consider the
two as identical in semantic nature. So important indeed is
this subject that we have devoted a special place to its con-
sideration, and have examined the processes by which the
meanings may be attached to the various morphological imits
that the student has memorized.
The chief raison cCHre then for clear and abundant explana-
tions is to react against certain of the vicious tendencies of
; which the student is so frequently a victim.
On the other hand, an excess of explanatory matter will
defeat its own ends and lead to other vicious tendencies. In
order that the student may not import his own ergonics int©
the foreign language, we teach him systematically by means of
explanatory matter the true ergonic values of the words he
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 249
leams, and by so doing we may induce him to give way to over-
analysis. In order that he may not import his own semantic
values into the words he learns, we give him information con-
cerning the real semantic values of these words by means of
true equivalents, but by so doing we may encourage the tendency -.
toward an excess of bilingual consciousness.
We shall find a way out of this dilemma if we always make
explanation subsidiary to assimilation. Let our ergonic ex-
planations follow and not precede the memorizing of the v.
examples. Let us reserve our explanation of the function of,
the English preterite until our pupil has already learnt by heart \
a large number of sentences, such as / saw him yesterday, I came
here jtist now, or Why did ymi do it last night ?
Let us explain to him the semantic value of the different
varieties of get after he has memorized a stock of sentences
containing them.
Explanation is only a vicious process when given in excess '
of the assimilatory processes. Explanatory matter is only
harmful when given out of proportion to the concrete
matter.
Let us remember above all that we must do nothing which
will have the effect of deadening the student's faculties of >
auditive perception and imitation. These must not be replaced
by explanatory matter, but, on the contrary, quickened by it.
Section 31.— The vehicular language for all explanatory matter
should be that which is best known by the student.
While the concrete matter (that is to say, the speech material
itself) must necessarily be of the language which is the subject
of instruction, it by no means follows that the explanatory matter —
should also be given in this same language. On the contrary,
it is difficult at first sight to see on what groimds such a pro-
cedure can be justified.
We have already alluded to a certain book which is full of
valuable information concerning the Chinese language and to
the fact that the average English student is totally unable to"
make any use of it owing to the fact that it is written entirely
in Chinese. Strange to say, methods exist the object of which
250 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
is to teach the most elementary vocabulary of a foreign
language, and in which the ' directions for use ' are given in
precisely the language of which the student is presumed to be
ignorant.
There are three justifications for this seemingly absurd pro-
cedure, two of which are based on considerations of expediency
and the other on pedagogic grounds.
It is urged that a teacher may be perfectly competent to write
a method or to give lessons, but at the same time be ignorant
of the language of his reader or pupil. In reply to this we must
firmly insist such a teacher is not perfectly competent. One of
the qualifications for the teacher of the elementary language to
those who are unacquainted with it is a sufficient knowledge of
the pupil's language to enable him to use it for vehicular pur-
poses. If the teacher is a method-writer, the least he can do
is to take the necessary steps to have his explanatory matter
translated into the language of the pupil, even though it should
increase the expenses of the undertaking.
But it may further be urged that when a class contains pupils
of many different nationalities it is obviously impossible to use
as many languages for vehicular purposes. This objection is
indeed the only one with any claims to respect. We can only
say in answer that if a class of beginners is composed of such
heterogeneous members, it is impossible to cause them to
" assimilate in the shortest possible time with the least effort
the greatest quantity of the most important matter." In other
terms our teaching in such cases cannot be strictly scientific,
but a pis alter ; it must be conducted in accordance with
principles of mere expediency. We shall have to omit explana-
tions altogether, or else give them in the form of diagrams and
gestures. But let us recognize that this course is dictated from
pure necessity, and, instead of making a virtue of this necessity,
let us rather express our regret that circimistances force us to
diverge from the principle which serves as the point of departure
in our inquiry.
But as a compensation for our inability to speak to all our
pupils in their own language we should at least be able to pro-
vide each one with a book in which he will be able to read the
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 251
explanations which we are unable to provide orally. Lest it
be said that such a procedure would be too costly, we will observe
that the general adoption of one standard system of teaching,
recognized as scientific in the best sense of the term, would
render superfluous that amazing multiplicity of books which
is the cause of so much needless expense at the present
day.
This leads us to the second alleged justification of the pro-
cedure that we are criticizing. A book designed to teach the
elements of some lesser known language lying outside the
beaten track, or one written with the object of teaching some
special aspect of one of the primary languages, can only com-
mand a limited circle of readers. If the explanatory matter
is written in Russian, the clientele will be confined to Russia ;
if written in Dutch the book will only find a sale in Holland,
and so on. But when the book is composed according to the
principle that a language should be taught without the aid
of any outside vehicular language, there is the possibility of
finding a sale for it in every country of the world.
The third alleged justification of the principle, strangely
enough, professes to be based on pedagogic considerations.
It is frequently lu-ged that the use of the mother tongue during
the lesson is a dangerous proceeding, and one to be avoided in
the largest possible measure. As we have already dealt with
this point in that part of our inquiry entitled " The Principles
of Linguistic Pedagogy," we will not go over the ground afresh ;
it will suffice to refer our readers to the various arguments
adduced therein, which show with cumulative force that the
exclusion of the mother tongue is generally, if not always, a
vicious procedure productive of most harmful results.
Section 32.— The teacher should foster and encourage the pupils'
capacities of visualization by adopting for explanatory purposes
the principle of visual correlation.
Visual correlation is the term that we shall use to express
what the Germans call UebersichtUchkeit or ' Synopticity.'
It denotes the arrangement of matter on a page or a series of
pages in such a manner that the faculties of understanding are
252 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
assisted by the mere contemplation of it. This is the graphic
method, perhaps the most important of the mnemonic devices,
including as it does the principles of localization (or spatializa-
tion), visualization, association, and separation.
Understanding, classification, and division are almost synony-
mous terms. No subject is imderstood until it has been divided
up into its component parts. In the Japanese language the
root of the verb understand (wakaru) also means be divided.
Thus instead of vaguely suggesting, as in English, standing
under, or taking with, as in French, the Japanese expression in
accordance with true psychology suggests. It is to me divided.
Nothing could better express the idea of imderstanding. Nearly
all explanations are prefaced by saying we must divide our subject
into two parts, and the subject under examination is developed
further by processes entailing constant repetition of sentences
such as. There are three aspects of this question, or This particular
subject must be considered under six headings.
Our inquiry itself consists of dividing up into parts and
of further subdividing the whole question of language-
study.
Many subjects are taught almost exclusively by means of
diagrams ; other subjects can only be learnt successfully by
their help. It is virtually impossible to learn geography with-
out maps, geometry without diagrams, genealogy without
trees, architecture and mechanics without drawings and plans.
With the improvement of pedagogic methods the system of
diagrams is coming more and more into vogue ; it is being
applied to the study of history, statistics, and a host of other
subjects. There are indeed few branches of knowledge the
study of which is not facilitated by some form of graphic
illustration.
This is only right and natural, considering that the faculty
of understanding, consciously or unconsciously, works by the
mnemonic process of spatial correlation. We listen to a de-
scriptive explanation of some knotty problem ; as the speaker
introduces his points, establishes differences and identities, we
form a mental picture of the subject in which we locate the
various factors. The mental graph that we form enables us
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 253
to grasp the problem, to comprehend it, and to survey it in its
different aspects. Those who do not form mental images are
probably incapable of understanding. The difference between
so-called intelUgent and imintelligent pupils consists in their
respective ability or inability to form these mental images.
The chief function of all ' memory systems ' good or bad is to ;
encourage and help the student to arrange his thoughts spatially
or diagrammatically.
It is worth while to try the following experiment. Take a
list of twenty names ; these may be names of people, places,
plants, animals, books, plays, foreign or technical words — in
short, any terms whatever. Try to learn them so that you may
repeat them off in their order without any mental confusion.
After ten minutes your efforts may be successful — or they may
not. Take a second group of names and dispose them in some
spatial form.
A simple method is to utilize the parts of the room in which
you happen to be. Go to the door, and while contemplating it,
repeat one of the words slowly and write it in your imagination
on one of the panels. Move to the object nearest the door ; it
may be a comer, a pictm-e, or a piece of furniture ; there repeat
the second word and trace its graphic form on the object in
front of which you stand. Then move on a foot or so and
' localize ' the next word, and go on until the list is exhausted.
This process need not take more than five minutes, at the con-
clusion of which you will probably reel off the twenty names
in their correct order with hardly any hesitation or mental
effort.
This experiment is not designed to prove that the royal road
to language-learning consists of learning lists of words ; far
from it. What it does demonstrate is the fact that the physical
separation of the units of a problem will go far to facilitate
its mastery ; instead of being superposed, as it were, on one
spot of what we may call the receptive surface of the brain,
each imit has its own place and acquires an identity of its
own.
But these considerations may lead us into the depths of
psychology and mnemonics ; we must content ourselves at
254 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
present with stating that when a problefti is separated into its
component parts and when these are disposed according to their
agreements and disagreements either in a real spatial relation
or the mental conception of one, that problem becomes ' under-
stood,' we become masters of it, and are able to reproduce the
diagram at will.
Probably most of us use this faculty of image-making, but
do it with such perfect unconsciousness that we are unaware
of it. We are sometimes just conscious enough to note that a
particular lesson or lecture was more deeply engraved on our
memory because it was given in new or unaccustomed sur-
roundings. Many of us can recall the particular spot in which
we learnt a certain word or expression. When turning into the
Charing Cross Road from Trafalgar Square, Monsieur X, who
is talking French to us, uses some French expression which
strikes us as being new material for our vocabulary. It is
almost certain that when we use this expression for the first
time our thoughts will go out in a flash to the comer of Charing
Cross Road, the geographical spot which has served to fix the
expression in our memory and to prevent it from being con-
fused with a few hundred others.
Apart from geographical or spatial considerations, however,
all good learners form arbitrary mental images corresponding
to the factors of the problems they are learning. We describe
to a foreigner the phenomena connected with the relative
pronoun in English. We say : " The relative pronoun is
expressed by who (for person), and which (for objects)." Our
pupil shuts his eyes or gazes into vacuity for an instant, while
he places who to the left and which to the right of the blank
surface he has conjured up before himself. " When expressing
the objective relation, who is replaced by whom, but which
remains invariable."
Our pupil immediately conceives the word whom as occupying
its space a little distance below who, and places a second which
on the same latitude as whom and the same longitude as the
first which.
" These four words may be replaced by that, which performs
the same function as each of the four."
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 255
The mental image has now become :
Persons Things
Subject ; who which
THAT
Object : whom which
" When used in the objective relation, that may be sup-
pressed."
The mental image of our pupil develops into its final form :
Persons Things
Subject : who which
\ /
that
(that)
Object : whom which
When we come to test his knowledge he will evoke his mental
image and read it off to us without hesitation, error, or effort,
and we call him an intelligent pupU. And the strange part of
it is that our pupil is quite unconscious that he composed a
diagram and wrote it down on the tablets of his mind, and that
he read off what he had written when called upon to repeat his
lesson.
His companion has never developed this visualizing habit.
Our remarks were superposed one on the other, each obliterating
the preceding one. No wonder that he calls the English
language difficult and the problem of the relative pronoun
insoluble — and no wonder we call him an unintelligent
pupU !
One of the functions of the teacher is to foster the visualizing
habit ; to aid the visualizer by providing him with ready-made -
diagrams in order to prevent him from creating them in a less
practical form and from having to efface a part or the whole
of an inadequate one. We must also strive by concrete devices
to develop the latent powers of the so-called ' unintelligent '
256 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
pupil. If he cannot form his own diagrams we must form them
for him. By demonstrating problems before him with constant
reference to a wall-chart or a diagram chalked on the black-
board, always with the same disposition of parts, he cannot fail
to receive the graphic impressions that we are forcing on his
consciousness.
^--It must not be forgotten that first impressions are the most
lasting ; the first visualization generally forms the basis for all
subsequent knowledge and constitutes the nucleus to which all
further acquired matter will be attracted. It is therefore of
great importance that each diagram should be drawn up in
accordance with sound and consistent principles in order to
avoid a subsequent change of form which will shock the pupil's
graphic sense and lead to painful mental confusion. We may
decide to use the following scheme to show the declension of the
German definite article :
Masculine
Feminine
Neuter
Plural
Nominative
Genitive
Dative
Accusative
der
des
dem
den
die
der
der
die
das
des
dem
das
die
der
den
die
But, if we do so, subsequent considerations must not tempt
us to alter it to, let us say :
Masculine
Neuter
Feminine
Plural
Nominative
Accusative
Dative
Genitive
der
den
dem
des
das
das
dem
des
die
die
der
der
die
die
den
der
for by so doing the sense of visual correlation developed by
the former will, be thrown into confusion by the second,
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 257
even though the latter should prove the more practical of
the two.
The writer's first impressions of the French conjugation were
gained by studying a paradigm in which the infinitive, parti-
ciples, present, and past indefinite tenses were disposed toward
the bottom of a left-hand page ; the right-hand page started
with the imperfect and was followed by the pluperfect, preterite,
past anterior, future, and future anterior ; on the next page
were the remainder of the tenses. From that day to this he
has always visualized the tenses in this relation ; for him the
conditional is still the over-the-page tense, and a mention of
the future anterior always carries his eye in imagination to the
bottom of a right-hand page. The writer has taught French for
many years and has always used a far more rational disposition,
but has never been able to visualize it on account of the depth
of the original impression.
The two following schemes are each perfect in their way,
but one only should be chosen and used with any particular
pupil :
(1)
]e
me
me
moi
tu
te
te
toi
il
le
lui
lui
elle
la
lui
elle
nous
nous
nous
nous
vous
vous
vous
vous
ils
les
leur
eux
elles
les
leur
elles
(2)
je
tu il
elle
nous vous ils
elles
me
te le
la
99
„ les
les
me
te lui
lui
5?
„ leur
leur
moi
toi lui
elle
99
„ eux
elles
If we decide on using the following visual presentation of
certain English prepositions, we must hold to it ; the square
258 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
must not be transformed into a triangle, nor should the positions
of each preposition be changed.
OVER
TO
AT
FROM
/f^eAn
ACROSS
ef
IN Si
^^^ vooto^
/
AGAINST
If you have learnt phonetics from a diagram which places
the lips on the left-hand side, avoid those which picture them
on the right.
The principle of Visual Correlation has been applied to
problems of declension and conjugation from time immemorial.
Paradigms showing in vertical and lateral colimins the relations
of gender, number, and case are among the most familiar features
of grammar-books. But such graphic methods are generally
limited to the classical problems which we have just quoted ; it
is hardly realized that a principle which has been applied with
success to certain special subjects may be applied with equal
success to others.
Let us suppose that we teach a foreigner the laws governing the
respective uses of the English simple and compoimd present and
preterite. They may be expressed in the following maimer :
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 259
" The English present and preterite tenses may be simple or
compomid ; the compound tenses are made up of the auxiliary
do and the infinitive of the verb. When simple, the verb
itself imdergoes modification ; when compound, the auxiliary
do is modified in place of the verb. The simple form is the more
generally used of the two, the compound form generally being
reserved for use in cases of inversion, when modified by not or
in cases of special or emphatic affirmation. The reason that the
compound form is used in connection with inversion is because
it is contrary to modern usage to invert the subject with the
verb unless the latter forms part of a group of twenty-four
anomalous verbal imits of which do and its modified forms are
members. Alone these twenty-four particles may be modified
by the negative adverb not. As each of those twenty-four
particles and no other verbal forms have the power of expressing
emphatic or special affirmation, we must have recourse to the
auxiliary do each time that such affirmation becomes necessary."
This is almost an ideal example of how not to present matter.
The adult student, let alone the child, may be heartily congratu-
lated on his visualizing capacities if he is able from the above
involved statement to gain any precise notion of the relative
functions of the simple and compound tenses in question. This
series of laws may easily be presented in graphic form by means
of the diagram on p. 260.
One of the main objects of the ergonic chart is precisely to
foster habits of visual correlation and diagrammatic concretiza-
tion by showing in one comprehensive scheme the sum of all
the ergonic lists and substitution tables which have been the
object of the pupil's previous study.
Whether in guise of ergonic chart, substitution table,
mnemonic diagram, concretized formula, or practical scheme
of analysis, the object of each of these graphic representations
is identical : the development and encouragement of the faculty of
visuaUzing.
The enthusiastic teacher who may be inspired to make
graphic representation the beginning and the end of his peda-
gogic efforts should not lose sight of the fact that this sort of
work is of the documentary and not of the assimilative order.
260 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
A complete collection of the most perfect and ingenious dia-
grams will not teach a single student how to speak and
understand the language when spoken. They are of immense
service for explanatory purposes and wUl be of the greatest
assistance to the student who wishes to utilize to the fullest
extent the sentences that he has memorized ; but they will
■Prestttt
Sim/ile Tttiits Compound Tenses
laiVE
HE GIVES =1 Hf DOES GIVE
Pn/erii I OAVE
The simple lenses |
are lo be used in
all cases excepi - •
The compijuiid
tenses are lo be \
used only
This IS the m.finirive concotnllant,
a variety of do which must not be
confused with the verb do.
This IS the infinitive ^r^e, not lo
be confused with give of the
simple present lense.
/ I In cases of
Inversion, because the subject
may only be in-^
verted with.
2. Wlien the tense
is modified by
not, because noi can only be|
used with
3. In cases of
special or
emphatic
assertion, because special or |
emphatic assertion
may only be ex-
pressed by means i
of- --
^ one of the 'verbal
particles, ' a group
I of twenty-four ver-
bal forms of which
, does, and did
are menibers.
not replace fluency practice, memorizing, and subconscious
comprehension. «=..^^
The use of graphic demonstration at the expense of oral
repetition and catenizing work is an obvious abuse of the
principle, and will surely tempt the student into many of the
habits described under the heading of " Vicious Tendencies,"
more especially those relating to over-reliance on the visual
memory and over-analysis.
It is for the teacher to judge at what moment to have
recourse to this auxiliary and in what doses to administer
it.
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 261
Section 33.— Further functions of the teacher are :
(a) To cause or to stimulate the pupil to work.
{h) To give the pupil opportunities of hearing the language
spoken, and to act the part of second person in a con-
versation.
(c) To act as examiner, to award marks, and to correct errors.
Besides organizing the programme and determining the
mamier in which the material is to be assimilated by the pupils,
the teacher will take all the active measures necessary to
stimulate the pupils in their task of assimilation. He must
help them to] digest the primary matter and must help them
to produce the secondary matter. However well organized a
programme of study may be, it will be inoperative if the
stimulus is not present to act as the mainspring of the perfect
mechanism. The teacher will encourage the good pupils by
his congratulations and arouse the laggards and slackers by
timely applications of the spur.
As every teacher knows, there are always a certain number
of pupils, both children and adults, who have not the slightest
intention of doing what they are not compelled to do ; they
will be driven, but not led. In such cases one of the functions
of the teacher is to drive. The teacher of real genius may so
possess the gift of pedagogy that he will end by convincing the
slackers that it will be to their immediate interest and conduce
to their immediate well-being to abandon their attitude of driven
cattle in favour of the more intelligent and more pleasant role
of interested participators in an interesting game. In every
individual there are to be found latent capacities of intense
interest and enthusiasm ; in the case of children these capacities
become active in strange ways, often manifested by the mania
of the collector and the curiosity of the investigator.
It is for the teacher to develop these latent capacities, to
direct them into useful channels and to utilize them. The
schoolboy who becomes an ardent collector of foreign stamps
may also become an enthusiastic collector of foreign inflections ;
those same strange impulses which make of him a veritable
encyclopaedia of football lore may also make of him a store-
house of phonetic, semanitic, or ergonic lore.
262 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
The teacher will also constitute an instrument of assimila-
tion. Many adult pupils enlist the services of a teacher solely
on this account ; he is the indispensable second person in all
conversations, he broaches the topic that will bring the conversa-
tion into being ; he will ask the questions that stimulate replies
in the same language ; he is the producer of oral material of
which the pupil is a passive auditor, or plays the part of passive
auditor when the pupil is spokesman. " Je ne veux pas de
legons," says the French adult student (only too often), " ce
que je desire, c'est avoir I'occasion de parler et entendre
parler, comme 9a je me perfectionnerai dans la conversation
et i'estime qu'on ne pent faire des progr^s qu'en parlant."
If the matter contained in the nucleus is sound, and if the
student possesses a well-digested and proportionate microcosm
of the language, his procedure is rational, and should be en-
couraged. It may be noted, however, that no expert teacher
is requisite to play this particular role. Any native speaker
of the language will suffice if the pupil's aim does not comprise
a constant commentary replete with corrections and suggestions.
An economical plan would be for each adult student to engage
the services of two teachers, one of these, the expert, will give
the necessary information, supply the necessary matter, and
make the necessary corrections on a reasoned and systematic
basis ; the other, the casual or untrained teacher, possessing as
his sole qualification a fluent knowledge of his native language,
will serve as a mere instrument of conversation, a means by
which the student will be enabled to use the material he has
assimilated under the guidance and supervision of the other.
We have noted on more than one occasion how im-
portant are the services of a ' repeater.' When we hear a
foreign sentence repeated many times in a clear voice, with
energy and persistency, it will indeed go hard with us if the effect
is not lasting and if we are not able to reproduce it with more
or less accuracy and fluency.
The teacher is to the oral aspect of language what the book or
the text is to its graphic aspect. In this respect the only sub-
stitute for a teacher is the phonograph with records which
have been made specially with a view to this work of repetition.
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 263
Another function of the teacher is to test the pupil's know-
ledge at any given moment and to award ' marks ' in order
that the pupil may realize his degree of progress. This in itself
is a valuable stimulus to good work, for the competitive instinct
is very powerful with most of us. Attempts to break records,
to surpass oiu: previous efforts or the efforts made by our fellow-
students constitute an incentive not to be despised.
Closely connected with this iaspect of the teacher's work is
the correcting of mistakes. As we have already seen, the
making of mistakes (other than mere slips) on a considerable
scale points to a grave flaw in the programme. Whatever
mistakes do occur, needless to say, must be corrected at once,
and the cause of error ascertained and removed, otherwise the
faulty expression will become incorporated into the nucleus and
exercise a sinister influence on the sound matter with which it
is surroimded.
Section 34. — A very important function of the teacher is to react
against the six vicious tendencies to which all students are more
or less subject.
All students, especially adults, are more or less subject to a series
of what we may term " vicious tendencies." Few are exempt
from them, the most experienced language-learners may be their
victims, and the vast majority of students are slaves to them.
The most general of these may be grouped under the following
six headings :
1. Neglect of the peculiar characteristics of the foreign
language.
2. Illegitimate importation of elements from the mother
tongue.
3. Artificial separation of monologs (single words), and
non-recognition of polylogs (group words).
4. Preference for strong forms.
5. Over-reUance on visual memory.
6. Exaggeration of bilingual consciousness.
It should be made clear at this point that all these tendencies
are not wholly bad, nor are they always bad. They bear some
264 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
similarity to various types of poisons which under certain con-
ditions may be prescribed in small doses as beneficial, but an im-
restrained indulgence in which will produce fatal results either
immediately or later on as a result of cumulative absorption.
Innocuous as they may be when judiciously administered, they
are, nevertheless, dangerous instruments. Every one of them
is contrary to the natural process by which a child learns to use
his mother tongue, and for this reason if for no other it behoves ]
us to exercise the greatest caution when brought face to face
with them.
In a general way it is necessary to take a strong line and to
react against them ; indeed, it may be said that the first function ,
of the instructor is to help the student to resist them.
In certain cases, however, we shall see that it is possible to
mar what would otherwise be an effective system of teaching by
an exaggeration of our precautions. To exclude from one end
of the programme to the other all graphic forms under the pre-
text that writing encourages an over-reliance on visual memory
would be an exaggeration of the danger, as also would be the
total exclusion of translation on the grounds that the pupil
must not be encouraged into habits of bilingual consciousness.
It is precisely the art of the instructor to determine at what
moment a pupil is beneficially or prejudicially affected by a
given procedure.
It is precisely in order that these dangerous tendencies may
be better resisted and that the pupil may better realize their
nature that we have insisted on a course of preliminary work -
previous to the study proper of a given language. Those who -
have acquired (or rather reacquired) the faculty of oral imita-
tion, who have a practical knowledge of the nature of language
and language-study, and who are acquainted with the leading
phenomena of memory are more or less immune. The young
child learning his mother tongue is exempt from these ten-
dencies altogether ; his ignorance and inability to abuse his
faculties of reason shield him from harm ; he acquires his -
mother language with no other preparatory course than that
of oral imitation. He requires no courses of phonetics,
ergonics, semantics, etymology, pedagogy, and mnemonics.
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 265
The older student, not enjoying this immunity, does require
them.
This indeed is the fundamental difference between the mother
tongue and the foreign language.
Section 35.— In order to perform effective work, the teacher (or student)
should have at his disposal an adequate number of the right
sort of instruments in the form of a practical library for reference
and other purposes.
If we wish to make a wooden table, two things are essential :
wood and tools. If we started to convert some rough planks into
a table with no other tool than a blunt pocket-knife our work
would be laborious and long and the result would be a very
indifferent table.
We must have the right sort of material and the ri^t sort of
tools. The fact that we cannot make bricks without straw nor
make a silk purse out of a sow's ear is proverbial. Experience,
moreover, has proved that the best instrument for extracting
a cork is a corkscrew, that a hammer is a better tool for driving
in a nail than the back of a clothes brush, and that a screw-
driver is a poor substitute for a tin-opener.
If we started to leam French with no other material than the
average pocket dictionaiy and no other tool than the average
" French Grammar," oUr work would be in vain. In language-
learning, as in table-making, house-building, and machine
constructing we must have the right tools and the right material.
We must have the instruments which will enable us to overcome
with the minimum of effort and of time the obstacles which
stand between us and our end, obstacles presented by our
ignorance of French phonetics, orthoepy, orthography, etymo-
logy, semantics, and ergonics.
Of the ' material ' represented by the lexicological units,
we have already spoken at length ; we will add a few words
concemiig the instruments.
These will consist chiefly of books, fiches, Usts, diagrams,
and charts containing the units themselves and all the ex-
planatory matter which will help us to understand and to
assimilate them.
266 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
It is difficult to work with insufficient or infericM* material,
and it is false economy to study a language without a variety
of first-class tools each of which will enable us to learn or to
teach something more easily or better.
The following rough list enumerates most of the contents of
the library which should be at the disposal of (let us say) English
students wishing to learn French.
1. A French-English' dictionary giving the morphology
(orthographic and phonetic), inflexions, ergonic and semantic
values, and frequency degree of all the lexicological units coji-
tained in the microcosm, accompanied by the most character-
istic examples of their regular and irregular uses.
2. A complementary English-French dictionary conceived
on the same lines and which niight very easily be designed in
such a way as to enable an Englishman ignorant of French
to compose an almost unlimited number of correct French
sentences.
3. A set of Ergonic Lists containing the most important
members of the most important ergonic categories, in ortho-
graphic and phonetic scripts and with full translations and notes.
4. The large-scale Ergonic Chart of the language, with all
the necessary mechanical devices.
5. Limited relevis from the Ergonic Chart in the form of a
series of graduated substitution tables.
6. A Phonetic Chart of the French sounds.
7. A detailed list of all the French sounds (vowels, consonants,
simple and compound), each sound to be described, represented
by a diagram showing the position of the organs of speech, and
illustrated by a list of some of the more important units (mono-
syllabic if possible) into the composition of which it enters.
8. Lists of words classified according to their initial and final
syllables.
9. Miscellaneous word lists comprising among their features :
^ (a) Words containing only the less difficult sounds.
(b) Words having the same spelling in both languages.
10. A series of graduated exercises containing most of those
described in connexion with the Standard Programme.
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE TEACHER 267
11. A comprehensive set of questions and answers serving
to explain the more useful and interesting phenomena of the
language in all its lexicological aspects.
12. A supplement to 11 in the form of a series of syste-
matic ' directions for use ' of the language in all its lexicological
aspects.
13. Easy texts (graduated) containing a high proportion
of the units figuring in a given microcosm, with English
translation and notes.
14. A questionnaire containing some thousand easy questions
and their answers. The first part of the book will give these
questions and answers in their classified order ; the second part
will contain the same questions in mixed order.
15. The sentences of most frequent occurrence in everyday
speech with indications by which most of them may be con-
verted into simple or compound substitution tables.
16. A series of model letters both of general and special
interest.
17. A corrective method designed to cure bad lexicological
habits due to previous and defective study.
18. A large bilingual dictionary less precise but more extensive
than those described in 1 and 2. Every word should be ac-
companied by its phonetic transcript and all necessary ergonic
and semantic information.
19. An elementary text-book of lexicology, with sections de-
voted to general phonetics, etymology, semantics, and ergonics.
20. An elementary text-book of linguistics or philology, de-
scribing and explaining the phenomena of language in general.
PART YIII
THE STUDENT
Section 36.— There are two categories of students who are necessarily
the architects of their own programme or method :
(a) Those who are unable to command the services oi any
teacher whatever.
(6) Those to whom the services of casual or non-expert
teachers are alone available.
Many students from the force of circumstances are their own
teachers. Such must necessarily nearly always be the case
when the language is that of a remote people or one of those of
which teachers are rare. If the student happens to reside in a
village or small town it is rarely possible for him to take lessons.
Even in the largest towns it is difficult to find teachers of
languages little known and less studied.
In such cases as these the student must perforce be his own
teacher and rely on books and phonograph records. Were the
language-learner's ideal library an objective fact instead /of an
abstraction, the student would lose comparatively little fey the
exchange. As matters stand, however, he must do the best he
may by applying to himself advice of the kind that we have
suggested in the foregoing sections. He must also to a certain
extent be the architect of his own method. Except in rare cases
it will be difficult for him at the present day to procure any
ready-made ergonic lists, still less an ergonic chart ; these he
must compose for himself with the help of a large dictionary
and a series of ' grammars ' and other works presumably
written for those who are more or less in his situation.
Those who are unable to avail themselves of expert teachers
may as a pis aller make use of the help afforded by some one
who, without being a teacher, possesses a first-clas^ acquaint-
ance with the foreign language which is possibly his native
268
THE STUDENT 269
tongue. If he cannot fulfil all the functions of the teacher he
will be able to fulfil a portion of them more or less successfully.
One of the most frequent cases in which the student is thus
obliged to engage the services of a casual teacher is that of the
traveller, missionary, or trader who goes to some country where
the language spoken by the natives is not one of those studied
in Eiuropean schools.
The student must in this case, as before, be the architect of
his programme and draw up his own ergonic tables.
The first care of the student working in these unfavourable
but interesting conditions is to ascertain which are the soimds
of the language in question. He must ask his teacher to pro-
nounce a given unit a number of times. He will then attempt
to transcribe what he hears with appropriate symbols. He will
also do his best to reproduce orally what he hears and continue
to do so until his teacher is fully satisfied. The student will
generally have to be more critical than his teacher ; too often,
imfortunately, the latter is satisfied with mediocre results. It
will be permissible for the student wilfully to mispronounce
certain sounds in order to ascertain whether his teacher is as
strict as he ought to be in correcting everything which is not
in order. With patience and perseverance the student should
eventually ascertain exactly how many sounds are contained
in the language, which they are, and to what extent many of
them differ from soimds already known to him. At the same
time he will have been careftd to note the stress, intonation, and
other alogistic features of the language.
When once he is able to write what he hears, his next en-
deavour will be to draw up the ergonic lists which wiU serve as
material for the chart. His procedure will be somewhat as
follows :
" How do you say / see two men ? "
The answer will be noted and transcribed without any con-
siderations of graphic continuity ; it will be written as one
word. The English translation will be written on the opposite
page.
" How do you say I see three men ? "
The answer will be carefully noted and transcribed; there
270 STUDY AND TEACfflNG OF LANGUAGES
will be a difference between the two sentences, which difference
may be taken to represent the change from two to three. It must
then be ascertained how to express / see four men, I see five
men, etc. The answers will be noted and a simple substitution
table will be the result.
It may be asked : " Why not ask the teacher simply to recite
the numbers from one upward ? "
It would not be a sound proceeding, for there is a strong
possibility that the numerals will not have the same form
when isolated as when used as modifiers. In French the
words corresponding to five, six, seven, eight, nine, and ten
possess two or even three forms, according to their function
and position.
We shall then ask how to say / see one man, and note the
unit corresponding to one and also whether the equivalent
of man differs from that of men ; if so this sentence will not
form part of our table ; it can be set oh one side for future
reference.
We shall then ask how to express / see two women and
compare this sentence with / see two men. We shall note
whether the unit corresponding to two changes in any way.
If not, we shall read the sentences I see three women, I see
four women, I see five women, etc., in order to be sure that
there is neither concord nor assimilation on the part of the
numerals. This point being established, we shall replace
women by trees, houses, horses, etc., etc., and note the imits
corresponding to each of these simple concepts. Our table
has now become a compound substitution table. We shall
next ask how to say / hear two men. The difference between
this and the first sentence will correspond to the difference
between see and hear. Other simple verbs, such as know, meet,
wait for, follow, etc., will successively replace the verbs see
and hear. Care will be taken at each step to pronounce all
the new combinations to make sure that they are ergonically
somid.
On semantic grounds our teacher wUl probably protest. If,
in making our ergonic combinations, oblivious of all except
ergonic considerations, we happen to pronounce the foreign
THE STUDENT 271
equivalent of I follow two trees, we shall at once be informed that
it is a sentence not in use among the natives. In all such cases
we must calm our teacher as best we can ; we may perhaps tell
him that we are going to form the sentence It is impossible to
say " I follow two trees," or Only a madman would say " I follow
two trees " ; we shall be forgiven and our ergonic study will
proceed.
Whenever our teacher is inclined to interrupt our trend of
work by considerations of a purely semantic order, we must
explain to the best of our ability that the study of the exact
meanings of our imits will come later. As we go on, our teacher
will begin to grasp that there is method in our madness, and may
possibly be able to contribute not only a number of appropriate
units but certain valuable hints which will enable us to accelerate
our pace. In order to bring about this desirable result we first
work at the more accessible ergonic lists, such as the one already
described. Before venturing on what may prove more difficult
ground, considerations of conjugation, declension and other
ptosonic features, we may first exhaust the possibilities of
the simple and better-known categories. Among these are the
complements of place, time, and duration, modifier categories
(such as adjectives of colour and dimension), pronouns, etc., etc.
For a long time we must never fail to work on the basis of com-
plete sentences, for only those who have had much experience
with strange languages know what extraordinary things may
happen when an isolated imit finds itself associated with others
in a sentence.
The result of the joint labours of student and teacher will be
a sufficient number of ergonic lists to form a simple chart ; the
working of this chart must be controlled and checked in various
ways until we are assured of its soimdness.
In the meantime, in fact from the moment that the first
simple substitution table has been committed to writing, the
pupil ipay start catenizing operations and carry on the work
dtescribed in the second stage of the Standard Programme.
The semanticizing of the units may be carried out in one
or more of the four manners described in the section dealing
with this process.
272 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Section 37.— The relations between teacher and student in point of
authority can only be determined in accordance with certain
delicate factors, among which are the relative degree of expert-
ness possessed or claimed by either, the particular end that the
student has in view, and the inducement which the pupil is pre-
pared to offer in order to secure the unconditional and unqualified
services of a docile teacher.
The vast majority of students are in the hands of their
teachers, just as the teachers are at the mercy of the method-
maker. They must generally abide by the decisions of their
teacher and be content to follow his programme.
In special cases the student may possess more technical
knowledge of language-learning than his teacher ; this may
result in a mutual state of distrust and passive resistance
In other cases the teacher is the more expert of the two,
but the pupil thinks the contrary. In both cases there is
distrust, an enormous dispersion of force, and a sad state of
friction.
The relationship between a teacher and his pupil may hardly
be compared with that subsisting between a doctor and his
patient. We go to a doctor prepared to place ourselves un-
reservedly in his hands, for we recognize him as an expert and
we acknowledge our own incompetence.
But in the case of linguistic work the issue is complicated
by a cross factor. The teacher works in a double capacity ; he
is the source from which information touching the language
itself is to be derived, and at the same time is presumed to
dictate in what manner that information is to be conveyed
and assimilated.
To take a concrete example, let us imagine A to be a fairly
expert learner with three foreign languages already to his credit.
He wishes to study a fourth, and has decided in his own mind
exactly how much of that language he wishes to become
acquainted with and in precisely what aspect he wishes to
specialize. He wishes, let us say, for a thorough docimienta-
tion on the soimds of the modem colloquial language and no
more ; he is not interested in its literary form, nor does he wish
to study its peculiar spelling system. The language is one of
THE STUDENT 273
those which is rarely studied ; native teachers are difficult to
find, few or no books are accessible.
B represents the teacher to whom A has recourse. His
principal qualification as teacher is that he is bilingual, knowing
both his own language and that of A.
Now B may have peculiar notions of his own as to the method
of teaching his language. He may be convinced that all study
should be based on the written aspect of its classical form, and
that such details as the sounds of the colloquial variety are not
worthy of serious consideration.
But A does not go to B in order to learn how or what to study.
What he wants is the material itself of which B is the only
available source. The obvious consequence is that A and B
will both lose a great deal of time and patience, and expend
uselessly a great deal of energy.
Or the case may be the contrary. Let us imagine C as
a would-be learner with no notions whatever concerning the
nature of language, but^ merely endowed with the usual stock
of linguistic illusions.
D will be a teacher well qualified in both of his capaciti^.
He is an efficient source of linguistic information, and has a
sound knowledge of the processes of study. He knows far
better what C is likely to require than C does himself. Now,
unless C places himself unreservedly in the hands of D there ,
will be trouble, misimderstanding will arise, and each will pull
in his own direction.
Even the best type of student, who intuitively chooses the
right matter and the right path, would derive great benefit and
save many months of effort if he recognized what the nature of
language really is and what the principles of study are.
A preliminary knowledge of geography always facilitates
travel, however well endowed one may be with the bump of
locality. Even the most experienced traveller carries with him
a time-table and a railway map. But few students possess the
faculties of choosing the right material and of following the
right paths. The majority of students are bad learners, and
one of the aims of the science of language-study should be to
convert bad learners into good ones, to point out to them that
274 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
fully four-fifths of their time, efforts, and money are running to
waste so long as they remain bad learners.
Section ^8. —The least satisfactory type of student is the one who has
neither confidence in the programme suggested by the teacher
nor the capacity of working out one of his own. He is the source
of constant trouble, and we should do well to advise him to seek
another teacher.
Let us distinguish the bad learner from the slow learner and
from the bad pupil.
By bad pupil we mean the one who will not work ; the lazy
man or boy ; the shirker. Th6 only advice we have to give him
is to cease being a lazy pupil and to try to become an energetic
student.
The slotv student is one who has no natural gift for language,
is rather dense, forms conclusions laboriously and often in-
correctly.
He is by no means a hopeless case. If he is docile and does
what a competent teacher tells him to do, if he works conscien-
tiously and with perseverance, he will eventually learn to use the
foreign language in the same way that he has learnt to use his
own. He is not a bad learner ; merely a slow one.
By bad learner we mean the intelligent type of student who
either from want of reflection or from ignorance of language and
its nature, misdirects all his efforts, does what he ought not to
do, and leaves undone all that he ought to do, and finally
manages at great expense and a prodigious waste of time to
speak broken English (or whatever the language may be), and
to compose written matter with an average of ten mistakes to
the line.
The more general characteristics of the bad learner are due to :
, (a) Thoughtlessness or lack of reflection. He has no con-
ception whatever of the nature of language or its
study.
^ fb) Mistaken haste. He is in such a hurry to work that he
forgets to buy any tools. Moral : Festina lente.
(c) Prejudice. That is to say, over-confidence in some
particular system and too little confidence in others.
THE STUDENT 275
(d) Lack of 'proportionate discernment, as a result of which he
exaggerates or else he unduly belittles difficulties, or
forms a mistaken analogy between language-learning
and other subjects of study.
(e) ' Oldfogeyism ' — i.e. the incapacity to absorb new ideas,
combined with an instinctive fear of the unknown.
There are many types of bad learners, and the mixed and
bewildering nature of their vagaries renders these so complex
as to defy classification.
In default of this we must draw up a rough and unclassified
list of his various shortcomings.
He learns to spell a certain number of words but pays little
or no attention to their pronunciation and totally ignores even
the existence of such things as weak forms.
He learns to attach to each foreign word an arbitrary and
conventional translation, and ignores the self-evident fact that
most words have several meanings and translations.
He considers words as mathematical units, and treats them as
such. Unfamiliar group-words and word-groups he either avoids
or dismisses as unsolvable mysteries.
He neglects all the essential preliminaries. He says that
he has no time to waste on phonetics and ergonic charts, and
forthwith proceeds to waste precious months in working with-
out those tools which alone ensure rapid and real progress.
He has a passion for creation. He imagines that people
speak by rule, that every sentence has its origin in a reasoned
calculation.
He avoids the reproduction of models or the rational modi-
fication of models previously learnt by heart. He thinks
memorizing a vicious process only good for parrots and children.
He will not willingly reproduce anything that he has heard,
some depraved form of linguistic conscience tells him that this
is akin to cheating ; he must construct everything in his own
way, and that way generally means the way he expresses it in
his own language.
He considers a mistake in spelling as a crime, but treats the
most flagrant mispronunciations as venial offences.
He learns more or less superficially a number of classical rules
276 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
of orthographic grampaar, but ignores the simple laws under-
lying them, and is proud to confess to a total ignorance of
phonetic grammar.
Not being aware of the distinction between colloquial and
literary speech, even in his own language, he conceives the
former as being a vulgar, degraded form of what he imagines
to be, and terms, ' correct ' speech. Never having learnt to
distinguish language from literature, he confuses the two
subjects, or even denies the existence of a science of language as
apart from the art of literature.
Having no precise notion of the number of words that a
language may contain, nor any notion whatever of their relative
frequency or usefulness, he chooses his vocabulary, or allows it
to be chosen for him, on a haphazard method based on the
principle that " a word is a word."
His eye-memory being abnormally developed and his ear-
memory being proportionately weak, he pays little or no atten-
tion to what he hears, or too much attention to what he sees,
ignoring the self-evident fact that he learnt his own language by
ear long before he ever studied a single word of it by the eye.
He maintains with a pathetic insistence that he cannot learn a
word until he has seen it written in its conventional orthog-
raphy. What he really means is that he is too lazy to develop
his auditive perceptions or ear-memory, and that he has not
enough energy to devote a couple of hours to learning the dozen
or so phonetic signs.
It is often to be noticed that those who are the least endowed
with the faculty of reason, who are the least capable of learning
by logical comparison, are precisely those who proclaim Avith
the greatest insistence that they cannot repeat or use any form
until it has been thoroughly explained to them. It is generally
the bad pronouncer who shuns phonetics and who refuses to learn
a word until he sees it written.
Whatever serious attention he gives to pronunciation is
devoted at most to its orthoepic aspect (the study of the ortho-
graphic representation of soimds). I^'he study of the sounds
themselves he considers either too trivial or too difficult to
warrant any serious attention. He is not averse to using or
THE STUDENT 277
even forging weird systems of ^imitated pronunciation however
complicated and inexact, but shuns a simple phonetic tran-
scription " because it looks so difficult."
He is unable to distinguish between real and fancied diffi-
culties, and consequently wUl set out light-heartedly to solve the
most hopelessly difficult problems, the successful solving of which
would not help him an inch on his way. On the other hand,
he will studiously avoid the easy and labour-saving devices
and the simple (because fundamental) explanations discovered
and put at his disposal by modern language specialists.
Cautious as he may be in the pm-suit of his own vocation, in-
telligent as he is in most other branches of study, he is an easy
victim to the quack when he takes up the study of language.
His teacher wishes him to acquire the faculty of reproducing
orally, rapidly, and by ear-memory, complete sentences. Instead
of developing his ear-memory by patient listening and accurate
observation, he analyses, isolates the words, and produces, not
the sentence, but a mere succession of its individual words.
One type of bad learner has a child-like taith in the efficacy
of ' conversation ' (he probably means the process of ' spon-
taneous assimilation ') and is willing to spend hours of expensive
lessons in order to have the opportimity of speaking broken
English (or whatever the language may be) to his teacher.
The bad learner is generally inconsistent. He confesses to a
horror of theory of all sorts, more especially of phonetic and
grammatical theory. " Practice," says he, " practice is the great
thing, theory is a vain thing." He asks his teacher for " conver-
sation," and when he gets it, he interrupts this " conversation "
at every moment to ask why such-and-such a form was in-
correct, and how such-and-such an idea ought to be expressed,
what is the best translation of such-and-such a word; in
short, bombarding his teacher with demands for theoretical
explanations.
His attention is distracted at every moment. While his
teacher by special request is explaining to him why A is A and
not B, he wants to know the difference between X and Z. If
his teacher is weak enough to drop the subject A-B and turn to
X-Z, our student will become inquisitive on the subject of C.
278 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Another type of bad learner pins his faith to theory.
He wishes to have the etymology of each word he learns, an
' explanation ' of each form. He refuses to learn any verb
outside a conjugation table or any noun outside the paradigm
of a declension. If he is a Frenchman and his teacher should
chance to make use of a few simple sentences in the foreign
language, he will meet these with a blank stare and an ex-
asperating: "Qu'est-ce que 9a veut dire ? — ^Dites-le en fran^ais."
He cannot conceive the idea of direct comprehension. For
him translation is the one and only process of understanding
the meaning of foreign words or forms. He imagines that the
untranslatable is the unknowable.
When in the more advanced stages of his^ study he listens
to a lecture or a speech in the foreign language, his worried,
strained features bear witness to his frantic efforts to translate
mentally everything that he hears.
One question is perpetually on his lips and printed on his
brain : " Qu'est-ce que §a veut dire en frangais ? What's that
in English ? Wie heisst das auf deutsch ? "
The bad learner has an aversion for any grammatical terms
which he has not already learnt in connexion with his own lan-
guage, and delights in giving familiar names to unfamiliar forms.
Our English preterite the Frenchman will dub imparfait ;
the progressive conjugation of verbs he calls the particvpe
prSsent. He shies at such terms as causative, frequentative,
possessive substantive, or proper adjective. He has never heard
of such things in his own native French grammar. If you
speak of fricatives, unvoiced consonants, or roimded vowels, he
is not certain whether these are mysteries invented to puzzle
him, or whether to pass them by as bad jokes.
He diagnoses badly. He learns the spelling and the arbitrary
translation of a couple of thousand isolated foreign words, is
astonished that this does not enable him to understand the
spoken language, and attributes it to a weak vocabulary
(" Je ne peux pas comprendre, je ne connais pas assez de mots "),
and starts work on the third thousand.
He may recognize that, he has acquired bad habits of pro-
nunciation (as a matter of fact he never pronoimces a single
THE STUDENT 279
foreign sound). As a remedy he proposes " plenty of reading "
and asserts that in time good pronunciation will come (" On
ne pent pas faire tout au d^but ! ").
The conscientious teacher can never obtain any satisfaction
out of a bad learner. The method is always wrong for him.
You may run in vain the whole gamut from natural assimilation
to abstract theory. What he wants is a little of everything
so long as that little is sufficiently superficial and sufficiently
scrappy, and then he will lay the blame on the book or on the
teacher if he is not able to understand, speaJj, read, and write
after fifty lessons.
We do not maintain that the bad learner commits all the
crimes enumerated above. There are various types of bad
learners ; some affect one form of aberration, some affect others.
In a few instances, however, the writer has met with that
extraordinary type which succeeds in combining the sum of all
the defects quoted in this enumeration.
Taken in hand firmly at the outset, the bad learner may be
transformed into a good one. If, however, his attitude toward
language-study has become an ingTained habit, he is a hopeless
case. He has so accustomed himself to this caricature of lan-
guage that he is no longer able to break himself of his habits.
When, conscious of some of these shortcomings, he again
applies to a teacher " pour un peu se perfectionner dans la con-
versation " and when the teacher strives to point out that
everjrthing must be releamt from the start, he is pained and
discouraged. When the conscientious teacher suggests a course
of elementary phonetics and grammar he is indignant.
In such cases nothing can be done except to hand him over
to the mercies of the nearest language quack, who will assure
him that his accent is very good, and that with a little time and
practice he will use the language like a native.
The object of this severe criticism is to describe with a certain
precision exactly what are the obstacles which many otherwise
intelligent students create for themselves, and to state in un-
mistakable terms the nature of their errors in order to be able
to correct them better.
It is evident that when the bad learner recognizes himself
280 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
to be such, he will immediately strive to become a good learner.
If he clearly recognizes that tendencies toward such habits
are defects and not qualities, that nobody holding such views
has ever learnt a language quickly and well, then he must
necessarily make up his miod to make a radical change and
become a good learner. If he does not, then we cannot even
place him in the category of intelligent learners.
Many may protest that notwithstanding the holding of such
views they have successfully mastered the foreign language.
The answer is obvious. If they have arrived at a successful
result, it is to their credit that they have done so in spite of
their self-created obstacles, and that had they studied on rational
lines they would have achieved this result with a tenth of the
efforts they have so laboriously expended.
Others may protest that they have been or are the victims
of bad methods and of old-fashioned teachers. This is in very
many cases true. Circumstances over which they had no
control have made bad learners of them, and it is precisely one
of the objects of the present work to warn the student against
bad methods and to put him on his guard against a continuance
of practices and vicious habits of thought such as we have
described.
In using the term " bad learner " we have more especialty in
mind those who, in spite of warnings and in spite of the most
evident proofs, persist in their fallacious methods, who persist in
imagining that their hastily formed notions and insufficiently
pondered theories are profound truths.
Let the student thoroughly understand, let us drill it into his
mind insistently and in clear terms, that the good learner can
and does perform with success in a few weeks what the bad
learner fails to perform in as many months or even years.
Let him understand for his own sake and for the sake of
his pocket, if that is of any consideration, that the sooner he
begins to leam according to rational principles the sooner he
will achieve real results.
He has learnt his own language rationally and with success ;
let him do the same thing with the foreign language.
CONCLUSION
Section 39,— May all those who have followed us in our inquiry so
unite and co-ordinate their efforts that language-teaching and
language-study shall be placed once for all on a stable and
scientific basis.
In conclusion let us address the following exhortation to critics :
if you are not disposed to accept all or certain of the data we
have gathered, or if you are not in agreement with all or certain
of the conclusions we have derived therefrom, let your indigna-
tion not take the form of wild and destructive criticism, for this
will not advance the cause in which we are so deeply interested.
Rather let your energies be directed into the channels of con-
structiveness ; let your evidence and your matured judgment
come to confirm and to reinforce what you may consider as
sound, to repair what you may consider as weak, and to supple-
ment what you may consider as incomplete. If you are in
agreement with our method of procedure, do not fail to support
it ; if you hold with us that the future of language-teaching
and study should be based on organized and unified thought,
then collaborate in the work which so far has barely conunenced.
We have avoided in all possible measure any form of
dogmatism ; if at times our argiunents have tended toward
destructiveness, it is beciiuse our reasoned and matured
judgment has convinced us beyond any manner of doubt that
they are justified. We have endeavoured throughout these
pages to state facts and to form conclusions in absolute con-
formity with these facts. Our aim has been but to add to the
general store of ever-increasing knowledge of the nature of
language, and to contribute our share toward ascertaining the
principles which will enable us to emancipate language-teaching
and language-study from the domain of empiricism, and to
place it once for all on a true scientific basis.
28,1
APPENDIX I
Shortly after completing the manuscript of this work I was
strongly advised by a colleague, who had had occasion to read
it through, to append a model of an Ergonic Chart. He urged
that this would considerably facilitate and encourage research
work, and by so doing would contribute in no small measure to
the utility of the book and to the success of the inquiry.
For more than one reason I was reluctant to follow this
advice. In the first place, I reaUzed only too well that the
perfect Ergonic Chart did not yet exist ; the classification of
the units, the terminology, and many technical principles were
still in an embryonic stage.
In the second place, I doubted whether it was possible to
accommodate a chart within the limited dimensions afforded
by the pages of a book. To condense it unduly would render
it unintelligible ; to abridge it unduly would deprive it of its
utility.
My colleague pointed out, in reply, that even a rudimentary
chart would be better than no chart at all ; that the ergonic
symbols might be replaced provisionally by an arbitrary system
of numbers ; that my readers would understand that an ap-
pendix is not an exhaustive treatise, and that many of them
would probably exercise their ingenuity in constructing large-
scale charts from the materials and key plan which I would
provide. In short, he overcame my objections and encouraged
me to produce the following scheme.
282
CONDE
slO
m35
p8
m57 |p55l
P9 1
5l9
m36
[mi]
pi]
p]Q
19 p8
sll 1
5?
38
s9j
s20
m9
nlO
p47
m9 ml
p48
m54
m55
p49
s25
mlO
m54
p47
m55
m56
s2
"sl2"
3l
s21
p50
p53
^57
ml
p6l
m20 TiE
m20 m]2
5l6
p54
m
slZ
p51
sl2
p55
m38 fn46
p52
5l2
p56
m59 m47
CONDENSED AND ABRIDGED SCHEME FOR A FRENCH ERGC
s2
ffiS
512
pll
sl5
5l6
s21
p50
p53
ml
p61
pSl
m20 TiK
m Pil2
p54
m29
siil
p51
sl2
p55
m38 m46
p52
sl2
p56
m59 t47
s3
sl5
Pl2
m65 m5 mlS m5 wiY
pl3
fries m5 mBk pTizi]
pl4
raBk
^7
»»2/
^
m(& m5 ml4 w6 mf/ ml5
Sl4
pl5
p40
p41
ffl<^ mis... m^ „. m^/ ml6
m5 mis
1
pl6
p42
p41
w53 ml4 ///6' 7772/ ml/
1^1
s4
il5
|m2j
-ElZ.
m57^ KTlTl b58
pl8
n59^ p4
pl9
Fi60l [psFj
p20
p)gO| |p56
p21
p22
rTl61 p
p25
ftien Ip5<
*16
p24
|in40 |ra48|
p25
IslOl |m49|
E^
s5
£1/
il
m8
p4
@E
p5
f«l
;
n41
P6
mf^
iii64
n
p7
m78
m32
•RENCH ERGONIC CHART
p61
s5
51/
m8
p4
5l9 517
p5
p26
Ml
522
^17
ni50
P6
w20
iii64
p27
ni/6 ml8
P7
m/S
p28
mil 5l7
s6
p29
m31 5l7
p30
R
Ik'©!
tsl
P2
s7
in22
p51
m26 sl7
p52
nz?6|
iii42
|m51
m27
s8
m25
sl8
p45
s25
in65
P57 M
m66
w47
1
p58
rafig
0/59
1
p59
myo
mjl
1
p46
II128
s24
El
p60
mm
p55
!r!43l Wi
s9
m24
p54
wiy m25 p26
p35
m50 5l7
p36
^55
p43
rnl8 wj/
p57
:il54
p44
id19 w;7
p58
Tii44 m52
p39
m45 [ii53
CONDENSED AND ABRIDGED SCHEME FOR
A FRENCH ERGONIC CHART
The scheme comprises two parts — ^the Catalogue of Units and
the Chart itself.
The Catalogue
This contains an infinite number of units, grouped on
mathematical groimds into three types.
The first of these consists of groups of Minimals — i.e. units
which it is not possible or not desirable for the purpose of this
particular scheme to subject to further analysis.
These we may call the Minimal groups (abbreviated to m).
Example : m8 = moi, toi, lui, elle, nous, vous, eux, elles.
Second example : m22 = a c6t6, ailleurs, au coin, au-dessv^,
au milieu, derrihre, devant, id. Id, quelque part, nulle
part. Id dedans, etc.
The second type of group consists of two or more lists of units
considered collectively. As these groups represent the sum of
their varieties, we may call them Sum groups (abbreviated to s).
Example : sl9 = m26 + m30 + mSl + m32.
This means that for the sake of conciseness we are using
the symbol sl9 instead of the cumbrous statement " m26 and
mSO and mSl and m32."
Second example : sl2 = pll + sl5.
This means that for the sake of conciseness we designate by
the symbol sl2 the two groups of xmits pll (noun compounds)
and sl5 (a certain category of noims and pronouns).
The third type of group consists of two or more lists of units
used in combination with each other. As these groups consist
a83
284 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
ot the product of their components, we may call them Product
groups (abbreviated to p).
Example: p61 = m20xml2.
This means that p61 stands for all the miits contained
in list m20 combined with all the miits contained in list
ml2.
m20 will be found to consist of units such as tres, trop, and
assez ; ml2 will be found to consist of units such as beau, bon,
and grand ; hence we have
tr^s
beau
trop
V
bon
assez
A
grand
etc.
etc.
which results in the p61 units ires beau, ires bon, tr^s grand,
trop beau, trop bon, trop grand, assez beau, assez bon, assez
grand, etc.
Each of the three types of groups, m, s, and p, have been
classified, according to their function, into a series of numbered
categories, or lists. Thus we find the series ml to m78, si
to s25, and pi to p61, making in all 164 lists. To combine the
elements of each minimal list with other units in such a way
as to produce p-units, and to combine successively such p-units
with other units until we arrive at an unlimited number of
complete sentences constitutes the process of Ergonic Ssmthesis.
To reduce, by means of symbols and formulae, complete
sentences to their minimal parts constitutes the process of
Ergonic Analysis.
Stated concisely, ergonic sjmthesis, or the systematic com-
position of sentences, consists of converting m-units into
p-units ; ergonic analysis consists of converting p-units into
m-units. A complete scheme of ergonic analysis consists of
reducing^ the pi of a given language to its m-values.
The Chart
This key plan or chart bears toward the French language
the same relation as a map of the world toward geography.
A FRENCH ERGONIC CHART 285
Just as the map shows us the broad continental masses, the
states into which they are divided, the provinces of which
these are made up, and the situation of the chief towns con-
tained in each, so does this chart show the main syntactical
divisions of the language, the subdivisions of each of these,
and their further subdivisions down to the smallest units
which can conveniently be shown on a chart of these limited
dimensions.^
This chart will be fovmd to consist of 238 rectangular panels,
each of which is designated by one or other of the 164 ergonic
symbols. Each of the panels is assimied to contain that list
of units for which its particular symbol stands. The processes
of synthesis and analysis described above are therefore shown
in spatial form.
The panel serving as a framework for the whole contains the
six possible factors of a sentence — viz. si, s2, s3, s4, s5, and p2.
It is therefore a product panel, and is designated by the
symbol pi.
Each of the six component panels is built up of smaller
panels. Two of these (m75 and m3) contain minimal units
only ; the others (sum and product panels) are themselves
built up of still smaller panels. By this process of dichotomy
we arrive ultimately at the last of the minimal panels (which
happens to be the components of p61), and thus complete our
analytic survey.
The somewhat complicated appearance of the chart is partly
due to its extreme condensation ; on a background of ampler
dimensions the last panel of s2 (viz. sl6) would be shown on
the more generous scale in which it appears as a component
of s4. Similarly the enormous mass of units represented by
sl2, instead of being condensed into a single panel as in the
'■ Both the geographical and the linguistic charts may be drawn to a large
or to a small scale ; the advantages and disadvantages of each are similar
in both instances. In the case of geography we place at the disposal of the
student, not one comprehensive map of the world t6 answer all purposes,
but the ailas — i.e. a series of geographical charts drawn to various convenient
scales, each having its particular use and function and generally accom-
panied by a gazetteer.
286 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
first variety of s4, would be expanded to a scale more worthy of
its importance.
The other reason for the complex aspect of this chart is due
to the fact that in this concise exposS this one chart has to serve
all purposes.
Let me add that I do not advise any teacher to bewilder and
dishearten his young pupils by demonstrating to them the
ergonic theory by^neans of this condensed chart. What I do
suggest is that the present diagram should serve as a basis for
composing an ' Ergonic Atlas,' containing a niunber of charts
drawn to various scales and in various degrees of complete-
ness. Many or most of these would be designed in such a
way that each panel would contain a few specimens of the actual
units themselves (see pp. 182, 183).
As it hardly comes within the scope of this book to give
a more detailed explanation of the ergonic theory and its
technique, we must now refer the reader to the chart and the
catalogue, and let these speak for themselves.
THE CATALOGUE OF UNITS
I. MINIMAL GROUPS
ml = noims normally requiring the antecedency of s20.
si.mas. a. ami, arbre, bureau, cahier, centime, chapeau,
coin, cote, crayon, devoir, eleve, exemple, franc,
frere, gargon, homme, jardin, journal, livre,
morceau, mot, mur, nom, ceil, paquet, pays,
pere, pied, professeur, pupitre, Soulier, tableau,
timbre, tiroir, verre, etc.
b. ader, anglais, argent, bois, fer, frangais, hit,
or, pain, papier, plaisir, verre, vin, etc.
si.fem. a. adresse, armoire, bdlte, campagne, carte, chaise,
chambre, chose, clef, dame, demi-heure, demoi-
selle, difficuUS, douzaine, fagon, femme, fenMre,
A FRENCH ERGONIC CHART 287
feuille, Jille, fin, fl£ur, fois, gare, idee, langue,
legon, lettre, main, maison, maniere, mhre,
montre, paire, partie, phrase, place, plume,
poche, porte, question, riponse, rue, sceur,
table, ville, etc.
b. crate, eau, encre, pierre, viande, etc.
plu.mas. amis, arbres, bureaux, cahiers, ceniimes,
chapeaux, coins, cdtes, crayons, devoirs, ilhves,
exemples, francs, freres, gargons, hommes,
jardins, journaux, livres, morceaux, mots, murs,
noms, yeux, pays, paquets, pieds, pupitres,
souliers, tableaux, timbres, tiroirs, verres, etc.
plu.fem. adresses, armoires, boUes, cartes, chaises,
chambres, choses, clefs, dames, demoiselles,
difficultis, douzaines, fagons, femmes, fenitres,
feuilUs, filles, fieurs, fois, gares, idies, langues,
legons, lettres, mains, maisons, manieres,
montres, paires, parties, phrases, places, plumes,
poches, portes, questions, riponses, rues, sceurs,
tables, villes, etc.
m2 = nouns never or hardly ever requiring s20.
si.mas. a. Jean, Henri, Charles, etc., Monsieur Lebrun,
etc.
b. [le] Japan, [le] Danemark, etc.
c. Paris, Bruxelles, Geneve, Londres, etc.
si.fem. a. Marie, Louise, Madeleine, etc., Madame
Lebrun, Mademoiselle Lebrun, etc.
b. [fe] France, [Z'] Angleterre, [la] Belgique, \ld\
Suisse, etc.
plu.mas. a. Jean et Henri, Jean et Marie, Monsieur et
Madame Lebrun, etc.
b. [fes] tltats-TJnis, etc.
plu.fem. Marie et Louise, etc.
ni3 = personal pronoxms, subject.
)ronoxms, subject.
je, tu, il, elle, on, ce, nous, vous, ils, elles.
288 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
ni4 = various classes of pronouns.
ga, ceci, cela.
beaucoup, assez, trap, un peu, etc.
si.mas. celui-ci, celui-la, V autre, le mien, le tien, le sien,
le notre, le vdtre, le lew, un, le premier, le
dernier, le second, le deuxieme, etc.
si.fem. celle-d, celle-ld, I'autre, la mienne, la tienne, la
sienne, la notre, la vdtre, la leur, une, la premiere,
la derniere, la seconde, la deuxieme, etc.
plu.mas. ceux-ci, ceux-ld, les autres, les miens, les tiens,
les siens, les ndtres, les votres, les leurs, deux,
trois, quatre, etc., les premiers, les derniers, etc.,
quelqu£s-uns, plusieurs, etc.
plu.fem. celles-ci, celles-la, les autres, les miennes, les
tiennes, les siennes, les ndtres, les votres, les
leurs, deux, trois, quatre, etc., les premieres,
les dernieres, etc., quelques-unes, plusieurs, etc.
_ t
mo = personal pronouns, non-subject, enclaved in s3.
a. me, te, le, la, se, nous, vous, les.
h. me, te, lui, lui, se, nous, vous, leur.
c. y, en.
d. me le, me la, me les, m'y, m^en, te le, te la, te les,
fy, fen, le lui, la lui, les lui, lui en, nou^ le,
nous la, nous les, nous y, nou^ en, vous le, vous
la, vous les, vous y, vou^ en, le leur, la leur, les
' leur, leur en, y en.
TQlQ = personal pronouns, subject, enclaved in s3.
-je, -tu, [-t]-il, [-t]-elle, [-(\-on, -ce, -nous, -vous,
-ils, -elles.
ni7 = a certain group of personal pronouns (used only in con-
nexion with the imperative affirmative) enclaved in s3.
a. -moi, -toi, -le, -la, -nous, -vous, -les.
b. -moi, -toi, -lui, -lui, -nous, -vous, -leur.
A FRENCH ERGONIC CHART 289
c. -y, -en.
d. -le-moi, -la-moi, -les-moi, •vi'y, -rn'en, -le-toi,
-la-toi, -les-toi, -%, -fen, -le-lui, -la-lui, -les-
luif -I'y, -lui-en, -le-nous, -la-nous, -les-nous,
-nous-y, nous-en, le-vcms, -la-vcms, les-vous,
-vous-y, -vous-en, -le-leur, -la-leur, -les-leur,
-les-y, -leur-en, -y-en.
ni8 = a certain group of personal pronouns occupying the
position shown on chart.
moi, toi, lui, elle, soi, nous, vous, eux, elles.
in9 = a certain group of adjectives (of various classes) constitut-
ing the most important member of s20.
si.mas. le, un, du, ce, chaque, le mime, I'autre, mon,
ton, son, notre, voire, leur, tout le, etc.
si.fem. la, une, de la, cette, chaque, la m^me, Vautre,
ma, ta, sa, notre, voire, leur, toute la, etc.
plu. les, des, ces, les mimes, les autres, mes, tes, ses,
nos, vos, leurs, tous les, ioutes les, quelques,
■phisieurs, etc.
mlO = numeral adjectives.
a. un, deux, trois, quaire, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf.
b. dix, vingt, trente, quarante, cinquante, soixante,
quatre-vingis.
c. onze, douze, treize, quatorze, quinze, seize, dix-
sept, dix-huit, dix-neuf.
d. vingt el un, vingt-deux, etc.
e. cent, deux ceni(s), etc., cent un, cent deux, etc.
f. mille, deux mille, etc., mille un, etc.
mil = ordinal adjectives.
si.mas. premier, prochain, dernier, second, deuoneme,
iroisieme, quatrieme, etc.
si.fem. premiere, prochaine, derniere, seconde, deuademe,
etc.
290 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
plu.mas. premiers, prochains, derniers, seconds,
deumemes, etc.
plu.fem. premieres, prochaines, dernieres, secondes,
deuademes, etc.
ml 2 = adjectives of quality, and participial adjectives. (Those
marked by an asterisk normally precede ml ; those not
so marked normally follow ml.)
si.mas. anglais, *beau, blanc, bleu, *bon, brun, cher,
content, court, difficile, drdle, facile, fatigui,
fermS, frangais, *grand, gris, important, in-
teressant, jaune, *joli, ju^te, libre, Hong,
*mauvais, neuf, noir, *nouveau, occupS, ouvert,
*petit, plein, prit, propre, rouge, sale, vert, vide,
*vieux, vrai, etc.
plu.mas. anglais, *beaux, blancs, bleus, *bons, bruns,
chers, contents, courts, diffi^iles, drdles, faciles,
fatigues, fermes, frangais, *grands, gris, im-
portants, interessants, jaunes, *jolis, justes,
libres, *longs, *mauvais, neufs, noirs,S *nou-
veaux, occupes, ouverts, *petits, pleins, prits,
propres, rouges, sales, verts, vides, *vieux,
vrais, etc.
si.fem. anglaise, *belle, blanche, bleue, *bonne, brune,
chere, contente, courte, difficile, drdle, facile,
fatiguee, fermee, frangaise, *grande, grise, im-
portante, intiressante, jaune, *jolie, juste, libre,
Hongue, *mauvaise, neuve, noire, *nouvelle,
occupee, ouverte, *petite, pleine, prete, propre,
rouge, sale, verte, vide, *vieille, vraie, etc.
plu.fem. anglaises, *belles, blanches, bleues, *bonnes,
brunes, cheres, contentes, courtes, diffi£iles,
drdles, faciles, fatiguies, fermies, frangaises,
*grandes, grises, importantes, intiressantes,
jaunes, *jolies, libres, Hongues, *mauvaises,
neuves, noires, *nouvelles, occupies, ouvertes.
A FRENCH ERGONIC CHART 291
*petites, pleines, prites, propres, rouges, sales,
vertes, vides, *vieilles, vraies, etc.
ml3 = simple tenses of verbs. (The eight simple tenses are
designated respectively by the symbols a, b, c, d, e, f,
g, h. For the sake of completeness, the two archaic
tenses past historic and past subjunctive are included in
this list.)
a. si. 1st pers. vais, ai, dis, suis, fais, parte, vois, etc.
si. 2nd pers. vas, as, dis, es, fais, paries, vois, etc.
si. 3rd pers. va, a, dit, est, fait, parle, voit, etc.
plu. 1st pers. aliens, avons, disons, sommes, faisons,
parlons, voyons, etc.
plu. 2nd pers. allez, avez, dites, Stes, faites, parlez,
voyez, etc.
plu. 3rd pers. vont, ant, disent, sont, font, parlent,
voient, etc.
b. si. 1st pers. allais, avais, disais, Stais,faisais, parlais,
voyais, etc.
si. 2nd pers. allais, avais, disais, etais,faisais, parlais,
voyais, etc.
si. 3rd pers. allait, avait, disait, itait, faisait, parlait,
voyait, etc.
plu. 1st pers. allions, avians, disions, itions, faisions,
parlions, voyions, etc.
plu. 2nd pers. alliez, aviez, disiez, Miez, faisiez, parliez,
voyiez, etc.
plu. 3rd pers. allaient, avaient, disaient, etaient,
faisaient, parlaient, voyaient, etc.
c. si. 1st pers. aUai, cms, dis, fus, fis, parlai, vis, etc.
si. 2nd pers. alias, eus, dis, fus, fis, parlas, vis, etc.
si. 3rd pers. alia, eut, dit, fut, fit, parla, vit, etc.
plu. 1st pers. alldmes, e'Omes, dimes, fumes, fimes,
parldmes, vtmes, etc.
plu. 2nd pers. alldtes, eutes, dites, fates, fites, parldtes,
vites, etc,
plu. 8rd pers. aUh-ent, eurent,^dirent, furent, firent,
parUrent, virent, etc.
292 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
d. si. 1st pers. irai, aurai, dirai, serai, ferai, parlerai,
verrai, etc.
si. 2nd pers. iras, auras, diras, seras, feras, parleras,
terras, etc.
si. 3rd pers. ira, aura, dira, sera, fera, parlera, verra,
etc.
plu. 1st pers. irons, aurons, dirons, serons, ferons,
parlerons, verrons, etc.
plu. 2nd pers. ire;s, aurez, direz, serez, ferez, parlerez,
verrez, etc.
plu. 3rd pers. iront, auront, diront, seront, feront,
parleront, verront, etc.
e. si. 1st pers, irais, aurais, dirais, serais, ferais,
parlerais, verrais, etc.
si. 2nd pers. irais, aurais, dirais, serais, ferais,
parlerais, verrais, etc.
si. 3rd pers. irait, aurait, dirait, serait, ferait,
parlerait, verrait, etc.
plu. 1st pers. irions, aurions, dirions, serious, ferions,
parlerions, verrions, etc.
plu. 2nd pers. iriez, auriez, diriez, seriez, feriez, parleriez,
verriez, etc.
plu. 3rd pers. iraient, auraient, diraient, seraient,
feraient, parleraient, verraierd, etc.
f . si. 1st pers. aille, aie, dise, sois, fosse, parte, voie, etc.
si. 2nd pers. ailles, aies, dises, sois, fasses, paries,
voies, etc.
si. 3rd pers. aille, ait, dise, soil, fosse, parte, voie, etc.
plu. 1st pers. allions, ayons, disions, soyons, fassions,
portions, voyions, etc.
plu. 2nd pers. alliez, ayez, disiez, soyez, fassiez, parliez,
voyiez, etc.
plu. 3rd pers. aillent, aient, disent, soient, fassent,
portent, voient, etc.
g. si. 1st pers. allasse, eusse, disse, fusse, fisse, parlasse,
visse, etc.
A FRENCH ERGONIC CHART 298
si. 2nd pers. allasses, eusses, disses, fusses, fisses,
parlasses, xnsses, etc.
si. 3rd pers. allM, eut, Mt, fui, fit, parldt, vit, etc.
plu. 1st pers. allassions, evasions, dissions, ftissions,
fissions, parlassions, vissions, etc.
plu. 2nd pers. allassiez, eussiez, dissiez, fussiez, fissiez,
parlassiez, vissiez, etc.
plu. 3rd pers. allassent, eussent, dissent, fussent, fissent,
•parlassent, vissent, etc.
h. si. 2nd pers. va, aie, dis, sois, fais, parle, vois, etc.
plu. 1st pers. aliens, ayons, disons, soyons, faisons,
parlons, voyons, etc.
plu. 2nd pers. allez, ayez, dites, soyez, faites, parlez,
voyez, etc.
nil4 = simple tenses of the auxiliary verbs avoir and etre. (For
the sake of conciseness, the 3rd person singular only is
given.)
a. a, est.
b. avait, itait.
d. aura, sera.
e. aurait, serait.
ml 5 = past participles (a = antecedency of avoir ; h = antecedency
of Hre).
a. si.mas. aime, attendu, eu, commence, compris, connu,
demand^, du, dit, donne, ecrit, envoye, espirS,
He, fait, fallu, fini, laisse, lu, mis, montrS,
oublie, parU, pense, parte, pu, pris, regard^,
rencontri, ripondu, su, trouvi, vu, voulu, etc.
si.fem. ainde, attendue, cue, commencee, comprise, etc.
plu. mas. aimes, attendus, eus, commences, compris, etc.
plu.fem. aimies, attendues, cues, commencees, com-
prises, etc.
b. si.mas. allS, devenu, entre, sorti, venu, etc.
si.fem. alUe, devenue, entrSe, sortie, venue, etc.
plu.mas. alles, devenue, entris, sortis, veniis, etc.
plu.fem. alUes, devenues, entries, sorties, venues, etc.
294 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
ml 6 = simple tenses of verbs and verb-compounds constituting
the antecedents of the infinitive (ml8).
(For the sake of conciseness the 3rd person singular only
is given.)
(m6 and m21 may be enclaved at the points marked by
the sign ||.)
a. peut, doit, veut, faut, finit \\ de, commence || d,
est II difficile de, a || Vintention de, etc.
b. pouvait, devait, voulait, fallait, finissait || de,
commengait \\ d, Hail \\ difficile de, avait ||
Vintention de, etc.
d. pourra, devra, voudra, faudra, finira \\ de, com-
mencera \\ d, sera \\ difficile de, aura || Vintention
de, etc.
e. pourrait, devrait, voudrait,faudrait,finirait \\ de,
commencerait \\ d, serait \\ difficile de, aurait \\
Vintention de, etc.
ml? = past participles of verbs and verb-compounds of which
the simple tenses constitute category ml6.
pu, d'd, voulu, fallu, fini de, commence d, iU
difficile de, eu Vintention de, etc.
ml8 = infinitives.
aimer, aller, aUendre, avoir, commencer, com-
prendre, connaUre, demander, devenir, devoir,
dire, donner, icrire, envoyer, entrer, espfyrer,
Hre, faire, finir, laisser, lire, mettre, montrer,
oublier, parler, penser, porter, prendre, regarder,
rencontrer, ripondre, rester, savoir, sortir,
trouver, venir, voir, vouloir, etc.
inl9 = gerunds.
aimant, attendant, ayant, commengant, com-
prenant, connaissant, demandant, deverumt,
devant, disant,^donnant, icrivant, envoyant,
entrant, espirant, Hant, faisant, finissant,
A FRENCH ERGONIC CHART 295
laissant, lisant, mettant, montrant, oubliant,
parlant, pensant, portant, prenant, regardant,
rencontrant, rSpondant, restant, sachant, sortant,
trouvant, tenant, voyant, voulant, etc.
m20= adverbs serving to modify ml2 and m25.
assez, aussi, bien, exactement, Ugerement, par-
faitement, plus, beaucoup plus, si, tellement,
tout dfait, ires, trap, un peu, un peu trop, etc.
m21 = adverbs and adverb-compounds, enclaved normally in
s8.
pas, bien, si bien, tres bien, cependant, d&jd,
encore, giniralement, justement, mal, tres mal,
mieux, beaucoup mieua;, peut-itre, pourtani,
quelquefois, rarement, trhs rarement, seulement,
souvent, tres souvent, toujours, presque toujours,
tout a fait, pas assez, pas bien, pas trhs bien,
pas encore, jamais, presque jamais, pas mal,
pas tres mal, peut-etre pas, plus, que, pas
souvent, pas tres souvent, pas toujours, pas
tout a fait, etc.
in22 = adverbs of place (simple and compound).
a cots, ailleurs, au coin, au-dessus, au milieu,
derriere, devant, id. Id, quelque part, nulle part.
Id dedans, etc.
in23 = adverbs of time.
alars, apres, maintenant, plus tard, tout d
Vheure, tout de suite, etc.
in24 = adverbs of manner, frequency, etc., never or hardly ever
modified by m20.
ainsi, aussi, autrement, ensemble, de temps en
temps, tous les jours, chaque fois, chaque annie,
etc.
296 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
m25 = adverbs of manner, etc.
convenablement, difficilement, doucement, fadle-
ment, frni, lentement, rapidement, tot, tard,
vite, etc.
m26 = prepositions of place.
d, d cot^ de, d travers, au bout de, au coin de, au
dessus de, au milieu de, autour de, chez, contre,
dans, de, derriere, devant, en, en face de, jusqu'd,
loin de, par, pres de, sous, sur, vers, etc.
13l27 = certain prepositions of time (occasional but not necessary
antecedents of m65 and m66a ; necessary antecedents
of m66b, m66c, m68, and m70).
d, d la fin de, d partir de, apres, au commence-
ment de, au mois de, avant, depuis, en, jvsque,
pendant, vers, etc.
m28 = certain prepositions of time and duration.
dans, depuis, il y a, pendant.
m29 = certain prepositions serving as factors of adjective
phrases (p54).
d, avec, en, sans, etc.
in30= certain prepositions serving as factors of phrases of
manner, etc. (p35).
d, d cause de, avec, comme, de, en, malgrS, par,
pour, sans, etc.
mSl = prepositions serving as factors of s6.
d, pour.
m32 = prepositions of the passive voice.
par, de.
m33 = prepositions serving as antecedents of the infinitive.
sans, pour, pour ne pas, afin de, afin de ne pas,
etc.
11134 = the preposition en, antecedent of the gerund (p44).
A FRENCH ERGONIC CHART 297
ni35 = ^ quelle heure, combien, comment, depuis quand, lequel,
laquelle, Usquels, lesqueUes, oil, par oil, pourquoi, quand,
*que, qui, etc.
*when used as a factor of p25, que becomes ce que.
TQ^Q = qui, quoi, lequel, laquelle, Usquels, lesqueUes.
Ill37 = quel, quelle, quels, quelles.
m38 = connectives serving as factors of adjective clauses (p55).
que, dont, a qui, auquel, a laquelle, auxquels,
auxquelles, avec qui, avec quoi, avec lequel,
chez qui, dans lequel, de qui, duquel, de laquelle,
desquels, desquelles, oH, pour qui, pour lequel,
sur lequel, etc., etc.
in39 = the connective qui serving as factor of adjective clauses
(p56).
ni40 = the connective que and si, serving as factors of p24.
m41 = the connective of the comparative, que.
m42 = the connective of place, oil.
ni43 = connectives of time and duration.
quand, lorsque, pendant que, depuis que.
Ijl44= certain connectives of cause, purpose, condition, etc,
parce que, puisque, comme, si, etc.
m45 = certain connectives of cause, purpose, condition, con-
cession, etc., requiring a subjunctive sequency.
quoique, bien que, avant que, a mains que,
jusqu'd ce que, pour que, etc.
m46 = units which together with the connectives m38 constitute
the adjective clauses p55.
il a, il fait, il le fait, il le donne, il me donne,
il va, il parle, il me parle, il met, il le met, il voit,
il fera, il a vu, il a vue, il a vu^, il a fait, il a
faite, il a fails, il afaites, etc., etc.
298 STUDY AND TEACHING OP LANGUAGES
in47 = units which together with the connective qui (m39) con-
stitute the adjective clauses p56.
est id, est sur la table, est d Paris, vient id, va
d Paris, fait ga, le fait, Stait id, sera id, a fait
ga, Vafait, Us a f aits, doit venir, peut lefaire,
vaulait venir, voulait lefaire, est venu, est venue,
sont venus, sont venues.
m48 = units which together with the connectives que and si
(m40) constitute the noim clauses p24(.
il vient, il viendra, c^est vrai, c'itait vrai, ce sera
vrai, je suis libre, je suis id, je suis venu, je
peux venir, c'est un livre, etc., etc.
m49 = xmits which together with the connectives slO constitute
the noun clauses p25.
je veux, vims voulez, je vaulais, je vaudrais, je
peux, il dit, vcms dites, vous allez, il vient id,
etc., etc.
ni50= units which together with the connective of the com-
parative que (m41) constitute the clauses p26.
vous ne le croyez, il ne le croit, ilnele dit, etc.
m51 = units serving as factors of clauses p30 (indirect object)
and p82 (place).
je veux, je voulais, vous voulez, je peux, vous
pouvez, etc.
ni52 = units which together with the connectives m58 and m44
constitute respectively clauses p83 and p38.
il est id, il le fait, il vient, je suis id, je serai
id, je suis venu, vous voulez, etc.
m53= units which together with the connectives m45 constitute
clauses p39.
il soit id, je le fosse, il vienne, vous le Ssiez,
il y aille, ce soit ban, etc.
A FRENCH ERGONIC CHART 299
m54i-beaucoup, assez, tant, autant, trop, plus, mains, peu, un
peu, etc.
m55 = de serving as factor of p48 and p49.
m56 = les, ces, mes, tes, ses, nos, vos, leurs, les auires, etc.
ni57 = ce, cette, ces.
m58=-c«, -U.
XQb^ = celui, celle, ceux, celles.
ni60= celui, celle, ceux, celles, ce, tout ce.
ni61 = quelque chose, quelqu'un, rien, personne.
m62 = de serving as factor of p21.
ni63 = the negative particle «e. (^ '" >
in64 =<!ertain adjectives serving as factors of p62.
si.mas. beau, bon, difficile, drdle, facile, intiressant, joli,
triste, etc.
si.fem. belle, bonne, etc.
plu.mas. beaux, bons, etc.
plu.fem, belles, bonnes, etc.
in65= quasi-adverbs of time.
aujourd'hui, hier, demain, avant-hier, aprhs
demain, ce matin, cet aprhs-midi, ce soir, hier
matin, hier aprh-midi, hier soir, demain matin,
demain apres-midi, demain soir, ce mois-d,
cette semaine-ci, cette ann^e-d, cette fois-d, le
mois dernier, la semaine derniere, Vann&e
dernihe, la fois demise, le mois prochain, la
semaine prochaine, Vanrde prochaine, la fois
prochaine, etc.
m66 = the following units :
a. lundi, mardi, mercredi, jeudi, vendredi, samedi,
dimanche.
300 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
b. Janvier, fSvrier, mars, avril, mai, juin, juillet,
aoAt, septembre, octobre, novembre, dicembre.
c. printemps, ite, automne, hiver.
XoQl = dernier, prochain.
]0[l6S = une heure, deux heures, trois heures, etc., to onze heures.
midi, minuit.
m69 = dnq, dix, et quart, vingt, vingt-cinq, et demie.
mains cinq, mains dix, mains un quart, mains vingt, mains
vingt-cinq.
ni70 = dix-neuf cent, dix-huit cent, etc.
m71 =un, deux, trois, etc., to quatre-vingt-dix-neuf.
m72 = langtemps, quelque temps, un mais, un an, une semaine,
une heure, un quart d'heure, une demi-heure, etc.
lOaHS^quelques, plusieurs, des, deux, trois, quatre, etc.
lXl74i = moments, instants, secondes, minutes, heures, jours,
semaines, mois, ans, siecles. '•
ni75 = est-ce que, qu^est-ce que, qui est-ce que, oil est-ce que, quand
est-ce que, etc. „,
Units of the following type might conveniently be added
here :
b. je pense que, je crois que, je suppose que,
fespere que, etc.
c. il faut que, je veux que, je crains que, il est
necessaire que, etc.
m76 = the preposition d serving as factor of p27.
ni77 = appropriate members of s4, s5, and p2.
s4. ga, quelque chose, Vautre, le mien, la table, etc.
s5. bon, beau,fatigui,fini, commend, etc.
p2. id. Id, sur la table, etc., maintenant, aujourd'hui,
etc., d Jean, a mon ami, etc., ensemble, avec
moi, etc.
A FRENCH ERGONIC CHART 301
m78 = past participles of transitive verbs.
si.mas. commence, demande, donne, Scrit, envoyi, fait,
etc.
si.fem. commencee, demandee, donnSe, etc.
plu.mas. commences, demandis, donnes, etc.
plu.fem. cormnencSes, demandees, donnees, etc.
II. SUM GROUPS
51 = m75 + sl0 + sll.
All units preceding the subject (s2).
52 = m3 + sl2 + sl6.
Subject.
53 = sl3 + p3 + sl4.
Predicate, but not including the complement (s5) nor the
ea^tensions (p2).
54 = sl2 + sl5 + sl6.
Direct object.
55 = si 7 + p4 + p5 + p6 + p7.
Complement (of verbs of incomplete predication).
56 = p29 + p30.
Indirect object.
S7^m22 + p31 + p32.
Place.
58 = m23 + sl8 + p33.
Time and duration.
59 = m24 + p34 + p35 + p36 + p37 + p38 + p39.
Various extensions (or complements), including those of
manner, cause, result, purpose, frequency, order,
condition, concession, hypothesis, etc.
302 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
510 = m35 + p8 + p9 + plO.
Interrogatives or connectives.
511 = s7 + s8 + s9.
Complements of place, time, duration, manner, etc., placed
before the subject.
512 = pll + sl5.
Nouns and pronouns {excluding personal pronouns) with
all their concomitants, adjuncts, modifiers, etc.
513 = pl2 + pl8 + pl4.
Simple tenses with their modifiers and enclaves.
514 = pl5 + pl6.
Infinitive compounds,
515 = m2 + m4 + pl7 + pl8 + pl9 + p20 + p21 + p22 + p23.
Proper nouns, certain classes of pronouns, and pronoun
compounds.
516 = p24 + p25 + p56.
Noun clauses.
517 = sl2 + m8.
Nouns and various classes of pronouns, with their adjuncts,
concomitants, modifiers, etc.
518 = p45 + p46.
Phrases of time and duration.
519 = m26 + m30 + mSl + in32.
All prepositions.
S20 = ni9 + mlO + p4r + p48 + p49.
Demonstrative, distinguishing, possessive, numeral, ordinal,
and fractional adjectives, all necessary concomitants
ofnmins.
521 = p50 + p61 + p52.
Nouns and their possible modifiers.
522 = sl7 + m50.
Complement of comparative adjectives and adverbs {not
including the connective que).
A FRENCH ERGONIC CHART 303
S23 = m66 + p57 + p58 + p59.
Qtmsi-adverbs of time.
S24=m72 + p60.
Quasi-adverbs of time and duration.
S25=ml0 + m54 + p47.
Numeral, ordinal, and fractional adjectives.
III. PRODUCT GROUPS
In the following formulae all non-essential factors are italicized.
pl = si xs2xs3xs4xs5x p2.
Complete sentences.
^2 = s6xs7xs8xs9.
Various extensions {or complements) of place, time,
duration, manner, etc., etc.
The Indirect Object is included for expedient if not for
loffical reasons.
p3 = *n63 xmSx ml4 xm6x m21 x ml6.
Tenses compounded by auxiliaries and patt participles,
p4 = sl9 X $17.
Predicative phrases.
p5=p61xp2(S.
Predicative adjectives and their modifiers.
p6=»*20xm64xp27.
Certain predicative adjectives and their modifiers, including
infinitives preceded by a.
p7 = m78xp25.
Passive past participles with their complementary phrases.
p8 = m87xp58.
Nouns. modified by interrogative adjectives.
304 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
p9 = sl9 X m36.
Interrogative adverb equivalents.
pl0 = sl9xp8.
Interrogative adverb-equivalents containing adjective
modifiers (dans quelle rue).
pll = s20xs21.
Nouns (with modifiers) and their essential antecedents.
pl2 = mSS X m5 x ml3 x m6 x m21.
Single tenses (imperative excluded) with their modifiers
and enclaves.
pl3 = m63 xm5x ml3h x m21.
Simple imperative negative tenses with mofiifsrs and
enclaves.
pl4 = ml3h X w»7 X m21.
Simple imperative affirmative tenses with modifiers and
enclaves.
pl5=p40xp41.
Infinitive compounds in which the antecedents of the in-
finitive are simple tenses.
pl6=p42xp41.
Infinitive compounds in which the antecedents of the in-
finitive are compound tenses.
pl7 = m57 X ml X m58.
Nouns modified by cet:-ci, ce — ^la, etc.
pl8 = ni59xp54.
Celui, etc, modified by phrases.
pl9 = m60xp55.
Celui, etc., modified by non-subject clauses.
p20=m60xp56.
Celui, etc., modified by subject clauses.
p21 = m61 X m62 x p61.
Quelque chose, etc., modified by adjectives (quelque chose
de beau).
A FRENCH ERGONIC CHART 305
p22 = m61xp55.
Quelque chose, etc., modified by non-subject clauses
(quelque chose que je connais).
p23=m61xp56.
Quelque chose, etc., modified by subject clauses (quelque
chose qui est arriv6).
p24 = m40xm48.
Noun-clauses with connectives que and si (que c'est vrai,
si c'est vrai).
p25=slOxm49.
Noun-clauses zvith adverbial connectives (oh il va).
p26 = m41xs22.
Complement of comparative adjectives and adverbs {in-
cluding the connective que).
p27 = m76xml8.
Infinitives preceded by a {corresponding in function with
the Latin supine in -u).
p28 = m32xinl7.
Complementary phrases (in par and de) to passive past
participles.
p29 = m31xsl7.
Phrases expressing the indirect object.
p30= mSl X m39 x ni51.
Phrase-clauses expressing the indirect object.
p31 = m26xsl7.
Clauses expressing place,
p32 = m26 X m42 x m51.
Clauses and phrase-clauses expressing place.
p33=m48xm52.
Clauses expressing time and duration.
(Note. — Clauses of time and duration containing sub-
jundives are included for reasons of expediency in p39).
306 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
p34 = m20 X m25 x p26.
Adverbs of manner with modifiers.
p35=m30xsl7.
Clauses expressing manner, cause, purpose, frequency,
condition, concession, etc.
p36=m33xp43.
Infinitive clauses (expressing, manner and purpose).
p37 = m34xp44.
Gerunds {expressing manner).
p38 = m44 X m52.
Clauses {not containing subjunctives) expressing manner,
cause, condition, hypothesis, etc.
p39 = m45 X m53.
Clauses {containing subjunctives) expressing condition,
concession, purpose, time, duration, etc.
p40=Wi65xml6 . . .xm6 . . .xm21+ . . . ml6.
Simple tenses {together with their modifiers and enclaves)
used as antecedents of the infinitive.
p41 = m65xml8.
Infinitives together with enclaved pronouns.
p42 = f>^3 X ml4 x m6 x m21 x ml7.
Compound tenses {together with their modifiers and en-
claves) used as antecedents of the infinitive.
p43=ml8xra?'7'.
Infinitives, together with appropriate objects, complements,
extensions, etc.
p44=ml9xm7'?'.
Gerunds {not including en), together with appropriate
objects, complements, extensions, etc.
p45 = ni2rxs23.
Phrases expressing time {hours, days, weeks, months, years,
etc.).
A FRENCH ERGONIC CHART 307
p46=m2Sxs24.
Phrases expressing time and duration.
p47 = m9 X mil.
Ordinal adjectives together with their modifiers.
p48 = Ki54 X m55.
Simple fractionals {or quantitatives) together with de.
p49 - s25 X m55 x m56.
Fractional and ordinal modifiers of nouns, confined, for
the sake of expediency, with les, ces, mes, etc.
p50=p53xp54.
Nouns (already modified by simple adjectives) further modi-
fied by adjective phrases.
p51 = sl2xp55.
Nouns (already modified by adjectives and phrases) further
modified by non-subject clauses.
p52=sl2xp56.
Nouns (already modified by adjedives and phrases) further
modified by subject clauses.
p53=p6ixmlxp6i.
Nouns modified (on either side) by adjectives (which them-
selves are modified by adverbs).
p54=ni29xsl2;
Adjective phrases.
p55=m38xm46.
Adjective clauses (non-subject) including connectives.
p56=ni39xm47.
Adjective clauses (svhject) including connectives.
p57 = m66x?7i67.
Names of days, months, and seasons (with their modifiers).
p58 = m68xwi69
Names of hours (with their modifiers).
808 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
p59 = m70xw»7i.
Names of years.
p60=m73xm74.
Measures of time.
p61 = m20xnil2,
Adjectives of quality modified by adverbs.
APPENDIX II
GLOSSARY OF TECHNICAL TERMS, WITH THE
MEANINGS ATTRIBUTED TO THEM IN THE
PAGES OF THIS BOOK
Accidence. That part of etymology which is more especially
concerned with the changes of form found in the con-
jugation of a verb or the declension of a noun, pronoun, or
adjective.
Accuracy. The reproducing of a given form in conformity to
a given model (not necessarily a classical or traditionally
' correct ' model).
Active use of language. Speaking and writing, as opposed to
the passive use of language : listening and reading.
Aggregative stvdy. Study in which all the various aspects of
lexicology are treated together, instead of being isolated
and treated apart as in Segregative study.
Alogism. The means of expressing a given concept without
the use of any concrete lexicological unit. Alogisms fall
into three chief categories : position, stress and intonation,
and sous-entendus. (See p. 41.)
Catenizing. Learning to pronounce accurately and rapidly a
given succession of sounds, without conscious calculation,
generally apart from all considerations of meaning.
A sentence, phrase, or word is said to be ' catenized '
when the student can articulate it at a moment's notice
with fluency and without conscious effort.
The memorizing or learning by heart of a given unit
is only complete when it has been both catenized and
semanticized.
The only sound method of learning the gender of a
309
810 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
French noun is to catenize it to an appropriate adjective
(e.g. le-mur, la-croix, une-belle-promenade).
[The term catenating has been suggested as a more
suitable term than the above.]
Cognate. (1) Allied by derivation. (2) A phoneme, a morphon,
a language, or a dialect, which is cognate to another or
others.
Colloquial. Relating to that style of speech normally used in
normal circumstances by the majority of the native
speakers of a given language or of a given variety of a
given language ; as opposed to the classical style of speech
based upon literary tradition.
Both the colloquial and classical varieties of speech may
be spoken and written.
The colloquial style may be divided into various * strata,'
according to the social position of the speaker.
Concomitant. Any ergon which is the necessary comple-
ment to any other, e.g. pence, dois, veux, commence a, ai
Vintention de, etc., are concomitants of the infinitive. (See
Appendix I, in which p40 and p41 are each concomitant
to the other.)
Concretization. A phase of semanticizing. The concrete associ-
ating of a given unit of speech with the concept for which it
stands (as in ' Material Association'). (See pp. 127, 128.)
Correct. (See Accuracy.)
Derivation. That branch of etymology which is more par-
ticularly concerned with the deducing of one part of speech
ifrom another (e.g. the noun considiration from the verb
consid^er).
As opposed to inflexion or ptosonics, which is concerned
chiefly with conjugation and declension.
Dialect. Variety of a given language (including the classical or
standard variety, should such exist).
The popular language of Li^ge is a Walloon dialect;
Walloon is a group of French dialects ; French is a group
of Neo-Latin dialects ; Latin was a group of dialects in-
digenous to a part of the Italic peninsula.
GLOSSARY 311
Direct method. A somewhat vague term loosely denoting a
system of language teaching largely based on the doctrine
that translation should be excluded in the greatest possible
measure.
" The Direct Method expresses neither more nor less
than the theory that language should be taught by direct
connexion with objects and living ideas." — Hardress
O'Grady.
ZHsintegration. (1) The resolving of an integral group of units
into its component parts. (2) Learning the meaning of the
individual words of which a previously memorized sentence
is composed.
Documentary. Relating to knowledge about a given subject,
as opposed to the assimilation of the subject itself (or
Assimilatory knowledge).
Ergon. The unit of ergonics. Any speech-unit considered
from the point of view of its function or powers of combining
with other imits, as distinct from its meaning or form.
Ergonics. The science which teaches us (a) to classify the
units of a given language according to their function in
the sentence ; (6) to build up original {i.e. unknown)
units from the smaller known units of which they are
composed.
Ergonics comprises the whole range of analysis and
synthesis from the sentence at one extreme down to the
insecables at the other extreme, whereas Syntax is only
concerned with the reduction of a sentence into Subject,
Predicate, and Object, and vice versa.
Etymology. (1) The science which teaches us (a) to deduce
original {i.e. unknown) monologs from a given root or
cognate (e.g. journaux from journal, finissant from finir,
lentement from lent) ; (6) to deduce the meaning of a given
imknown word by its morphological relation to its ancestral
or other cognates {e.g. knowing the meaning of cadre, to
deduce the meaning of encadrer). (2) The science which
treats of the history of words in general.
312 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
The unit of etymology is the etymon.
Most of the phenomena of inflexion (ptosonics or acci-
dence) and derivation come into the province of etymology.
(See p. 44.)
Etymon. The tmit of etymology. Any group of significative
speech-units cognate with each other and with their
common ancestral form or forms. (See p. 44.)
Graphic continuity. The representation of two or more units
of speech by means of one continuous written unit.
Graphic continuity involves the terms monolog, polylog,
and miolog.
Immediate comprehension. (See Subconscious Comprehension.)
Immediate (or non-mediate) expression. The power of express-
ing a given concept without conscious effort, synthesis, or
translation.
Inflexions. (1) Morphological variations of a given etymon
consequent on the use of affixes, vowel-change, etc., corre-
sponding to definite etymological or ergonic phenomena.
E.g., looked, gave, and them are the respective inflexions
of look, give, and they (but a is not an inflexion of an, nor an
of a). (2) The changes undergone by words to express the
relations of case, gender, person, tense, etc.
Insecables. The ultimate significative units of speech. They
constitute fractions of greater units but cannot themselves
be decomposed into lesser units. (See p. 45.)
Integral. Considered as a whole, without analysis, without
consideration of the component parts.
Intellectual exercises. Exercises involving the development
and use of the reasoning powers, as opposed to mechanical
exercises, which develop the reflex powers.
Language. The medium by which thoughts and emotions are
expressed and conveyed from one person to another. (See
p. 29.)
Language is often confused by the thoughtless with
literature or literary variety of language. (See Literature.)
GLOSSARY 818
Letter, (l) The ultimate unit of written speech. Any con-
ventional symbol standing for any given phoneme or
phonemes. (2) The imit of orthography. Any symbol
used in a conventional traditional spelling system ; such
symbol may or may not correspond to any given phoneme
or phonomes.
Lexicological units. (1) Sentences, phrases, clauses, polylogs,
monologs, miologs ; morphons, etymons, ergons, seman-
ticons. (2) Words, their components and their multiples.
Lexicology. The study of words in all their aspects. Phonetics,
phonology, orthography, orthoepy, etymology, ergonics,
and semantics are branches of lexicology.
Literature. (1) An artificial and aesthetic application of lan-
guage proper. (2) The application of language to artistic
purposes.
Localization. A mnemonic process consisting of forming place-
associations.
Manifestations, The two mediums by which language is mani-
fested to the perception — viz. speaking and writing.
Material association. A mode of semanticizing in which the
unit is associated more or less materially with the object,
quality, or action which it denotes.
Mechanical exercises. Exercises involving the use and develop-
ment of the reflex powers, as opposed to intellectual exercises
which develop the reasoning powers.
Memorizing. Learning a given unit by heart. The special
variety of memorizing which aims at the correct, fluent,
and ready mastery of the succession of sounds contained
in the unit is termed Catenizing. The special variety of
memorizing which aims at the correct and ready associa-
tion of the unit with its meaning is termed Semanticizing.
Method. (1) A given means or system of learning or of teaching
a language. (2) A given means or system of learning or of
teaching a given aspect of language. (3) A book embody-
ing (1) or (2).
814 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Microcosm. A vocabulary of the more important and most
characteristic units of a given language, selected by the
method-writer or teacher in accordance with and as a com-
promise between the principles of freqiiency, ergonic com-
bination, concreteness, proportlvri, and general earpediency.
Minimals. Units which it is either impossible or inexpedient
for a given purpose to submit to further analysis.
Miolog. A significative or functional unit such as an affix ;
miologs are generally considered as fractions of words.
(See p. 40.)
Mnemonics. The science which treats of the systematic and
rational cultivation and development of the power of
memory.
Monolog. A word considered merely as a conventional unit of
vocabulary in virtue of its being (a) written all in one piece
without any interrupting break or space ; (6) separated by
a break or space from the words with which it may happen
to be juxtaposed. (See p. 40.)
Morphology. The science which teaches us the form of speech-
units, as distinct from their meaning and function.
Phonetics, Phonology, Orthography, and Etymology are
special branches of morphology. (See p. 43.)
Morphon. The unit of morphology. Any speech unit con-
sidered from the point of view of its form, as apart from its
meaning or function.
Orthoepy. The art of deducing a given pronvmciation from a
given orthographic form.
The various values of ough in plough, cough, ought,
thorough, enough do not constitute a phonetic difficulty, but
an orthoepic difficulty.
Prior to the modern phonetic movement, pronimciation
was always studied and taught on an ' orthoepic ' basis —
that is to say, sounds were considered to be the oral inter-
pretation of the letters of a given conventional spelling.
Orthography. The art of writing the right letters in the right
places according to a given conventional system of spelling.
GLOSSARY 315
The unit of orthography is the letter, as that of phonetics
is the sound, and as that of phonology is the phoneme.
Orthography and orthoepy alone constitute the artificial
aspect of language.
Passive aspect of language. Listening and reading, as opposed
to the active use of language : speaking and writing.
Philology. The science which treats of the history, evolution,
and developments of language in general or of a given
language or dialect.
Phoneme. The unit of phonology. A sound, an intimate sound
combination, a stress or a tone, together with all the
variants used by different speakers in the same or in differ-
ent dialects in the same or in different periods of history.
The phoneme represented by the vowel-letter o in the
English word bone remains the same phoneme whether
pronoiuiced [ou] (as in the south of England), [au] as in
Cockney), [o:] as in Scotland, or [a:] as in Early English.
(See p. 43.) (See Phonology.)
Phonetics. The science which investigates the formation of
speech-sounds and the mode of using them in connected
speech.
The unit of phonetics proper is the speech-sound.
Various aspects of phonetics are associated respectively
with acoustics, physiology, lexicology, and philology.
Phonology. That branch of phonetics which is more particularly
concerned with the various values of a given phoneme
(a) during the course of its history, (6) according to the
dialect in which it is used.
The phonologist teaches us that the vowel in cut generally
has the value of [a] in the south of England, and the value
of [u] in certain northern dialects, whereas the phonetician
teaches us how to pronounce either or both of these sounds,
and tells us how they are formed by the organs of speech.
(See Phoneme.)
Pidgin. Abnormal dialect of a given language as developed and
used by speakers of mixed nationalities or races, as the
816 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
pidgin English of the Chinese ports or the sabir of the
Mediterranean.
Polylog. Unit composed of two or more monologs in juxta-
position but functionally and semantically equal to a
monolog.
Primary matter. All units learnt by heart integrally {i.e. with-
out analysis or synthesis).
Ptosonic. Relating to inflexions as distinct from other derived
forms.
Reform method. Generally synonymous with Direct Method
(q.v.).
Secondary matter. All imits derived or built up by the pupil
from Primary matter (q.v.).
Segregation. The principle by which each aspect, phase, or
particular difficulty of a language is isolated from the
others in order to secure the complete and sole attention
of the pupil, thus avoiding confusion or diffusion of
thought.
Segregative study. Study in which all the various aspects of
lexicology are isolated and treated apart, as when we learn
the pronunciation of words apart from their meanings or
functions and vice versa.
Semantic. Pertaining to meanings.
Semanticizing. (1) Convesdng to the pupil (by means of
Material Association, Translation, Definition, or Context)
the meaning of a given tmit. (2) Memorizing the meaning
of a given unit, apart from all considerations of correct or
fluent articulation.
[The author has not yet succeeded in finding two different
terms with which to distinguish these two connotations ;
he would be glad to receive suggestions in regard to this
matter.]
Semanticon. The unit of meaning or of thought. Any group
of speech-imits each of which expresses the same or nearly
the same idea. (Also called a semantic group.)
GLOSSARY Sir
The identification of semanticons in two or more
languages constitutes the basis of all lational, translation.
(See pp. 44, 45.)
Semantics. The science which treats of the meaning of speech-
units, as distinct from their form or function.
Historical semantics (often called semasiology) treats of the
changes in meaning of a given etymon during the course of
its history and in the range of its geographical distribution.
The imit of semantics is the semanticon. (See pp. 44, 45.)
Sound (or speech-sound). The unit of phonetics proper. The
acoustic effect consequent upon5modifying a current of air
by the organs of speech.
A speech-sound is a fixed quantity, determined by a
given conformation of the organs of speech. A speech-
soimd may cease to be used, and its place may be taken by
some other sound, but a speech-sound proper is ndt subject
to evolution and can therefore have no history. What is
generally termed the history of sounds is in reality the
history of phonemes.
Spatialization. The utilization of space with the object of
converting the abstract into a semblance of concrete form.
Study. Work performed by anybody in order to get to know
something or to get to know how to do something. Study
may be conscious or subconscious ; the extent of study may
be complete or partial ; the degree of study may be documen-
tary or assimilative.
SvbconscUms corrvprehension. The art of understanding con-
nected speech (spoken or written) without conscious effort,
analysis, or translation.
The term immediate (or non-mediate) comprehension may
be used in the same sense.
Substitution table. A certain arrangement in vertical columns of
units having certain powers of combination. (See pp. 180
to 183.)
(Every p-group of an ergonic chart is necessarily a sub-
stitution table.)
318 STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Synonym. A given unit expressing the same or nearly the same
meaning as another given imit.
Synopticity. (See Uebersichtlichkeit.)
Syntax. That branch of ergonics which is concerned with the
analysis of a sentence into subject, predicate, and object,
or the building up of a sentence from these three com-
ponents.
Transcription. (1) The converting of an orthographic text into
a phonetic text or vice versa. (2) The result of such con-
version.
Translation. (1) The equivalent in a given language of a unit
or of a series of units in another language. (2) The process
of discovering or the act of expressing such equivalences.
If any given pair of imits are cognate in derivation, the
result is an etymological translation ; if they are cognate
in meaning, the result is a semantic translation. Literal
translation is a term which appears to be meaningless.
Uebersichtlichkeit. Visual correlation, ' surveyability,' ' synop-
ticity,' the quality possessed by synoptic tables.
Undifferentiated Programme. A programme which does not
observe the principle of segregation.
Unit. (See Lexicological unit.)
Vehicular language. The language which is used as the medium
of explanations.
Visual correlation. (See Uebersichtlichkeit.)
Visualization. The power of forming mental images, similar to
localization {q.v.).
Word. A loose term without any precise meaning, designating
various types of lexicological units, generally monologs.
APPENDIX III
LIST OF PHONETIC SYMBOLS
The symbols have the values shown by the italic letters in the
words given as illustrations.
A. French and English Sounds
Phonetic Symbol
Value of Symbol when
Value of Symbol when
usedin French Words
used i
in English Words
Vowels
ii
lire
see
i
si
I
—
give
e
hU
—
E
belle
•pen (also first vowel
element in where)
ae
—
cat
a
pctte
(First
vowel element
in nofw)
A
—
cut
u:
jottr
too
u
tout
—
u
—
book
o:
vdtre
—
o
heau
(First
vowel element
in go)
d:
fort
all
o
bonne
stop
a:
pote
ask
a
pas
—
a:
—
first
a
peser
again
y
lt*ne
—
319
320 STUDY AND TEACfflNG OF LANGUAGES
Phonetic Symbol
Value of Symbol when
used in French Words
Value of Symbol when
used in English Words
Vowels — cont.
^:
creuse
—
0
■peu
—
oe;
CE
peuT
oeut
•~~~
e
fin
—
a
tent
—
5
hon
—
ce
hTun
—
Diphthongs
ei
—
late
ai
—
five
ou
—
go
au
—
noHJ
DI
13
— "■
hoy
dear
83
—
•where
U3
—
sure
Consonants
P
b
pas
bas
put
be
t
tas
take
d
deux
do
k
quel
come
g
gant
go
m
ma
my
n
non
no
D
agneau
nuit
bring
w
otiest
Miait
f
feu
five
V
uous
very
thin
S
—
then
LIST OF PHONETIC SYMBOLS 321
Phonetic Symbol
Consonants —
Value of Symbol when
used in French Words
■cont.
Value
used if,
of Symbol when
t English Words
J
—
red
r
rat
— •
s
si
so
z
doujze
rose
s
chovL
shut
3
jeu
plea.9ure
J
h
yenx
yes
hat
1
be&
Zend
}
—
hell (final)
I
peupte {final)
—
Various
tj = cfe in cAurch.
d3=7in/udge.
J =the Himgarian sound gy in mag«/ar.
' indicates that the following syllable is stressed.
: indicates that the vowel to which it is attached is
long.
INDEX
Academy, French, 32
Accidence, 247, Appendix II
Accuracy, 119, 120, 121, 160, Appen-
dix II
Active V. passive work, 13, 65, 75,
Appendix II
Advanced stage, 122
Advantages of integral memorizing,
112, 113
Affixes, 36
Agglutinative languages, 36
Aggregative study, 73, Appen-
dix II
Aim of student, 68, 71, 225^.
Alogisms, 12, 39, 41, 42, 45, Appen-
dix II
Alphabetic aspect of language, 30
Analysis, 46
Ancestral forms, 43, 44
Archaisms, 204
Articulation exercises, 148, 149, 152,
153, 154, 158
Artificial language, facility of, 23
Aspects of study, 74
Association of ideas, 55
Basis of classification, 43
Bilingual consciousness, 49, 240, 263,
264
Books, 171
Calligbaphy, 51
Cards and card index, 171, 206
Catalogue of French units. Appen-
dix I
Catenizing, 27, 55, 103-119, Appen-
dix II
— exercises, 140
— tediousness of, 123
323
Chart, Ergonic, 190, 101, 266, 271,
Appendix I
Chart, Phonetic, 161, 162, 212, 266
Child, bilingual, 75
Children learning mother tongue,
264
Chinese characters, writing, 52, 104,
140
Chinese words, 36, 37
Choice of matter, 273
Classification of units, 12, 42-46
Cockney, 61
Cognate, Appendix II
Cognate languages, 58, 60
Cognates, ancestral, 44
— etymological, 34, 44
— foreign, 44
— semantic, 34, 35, 36
Coleman, H. 0., 42
Colloquial style, 61, 62, Appendix II
Composition, 221, 222, 223, 236
Compound words, 37, 38, 39
Concentration, 73, 74
Concreteness, 127, 128
Concretizing or concretization, 22,
27, 127, 128, Appendix II
Confusion of thought, 73, 74
Conscious study, advantages and
limitations of, 136, 137
Context as a mode of teaching
meanings, 77-103
Co-ordination of efforts, 27
'Correct' speech, 276
Corrective courses, 16, 119
Cummings, Thomas F., quotation
from, 120, 121
Definition, 45
— as a mode of teaching meanings,
77-102
324
STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Derivation and etymology, 44, Ap-
pendix II
Dialects, 60, 62, 63, 64, Appendix II
Dictation, 208, 209
Dictionary, ideal, 266
Differentiation of Semantic Cog-
nates, 36
Difficulty, factor of, 73, 74, 110, 277
— imaginary, 22, 23
Direct Method, 71, 72, 78, 95, 98, 99,
Appendix II
fallacy of, 83, 84, 85, 92
— Programme, 95, 96
— Semanticizing, 95, 96
Disintegration, 214, Appendix II
Documentary knowledge of lan-
guage, 16, 67, Appendix II
Eab-memoby, 276
Bar-training exercises, 145, 150, 151,
158
Elementary stage, 122
Enfant bilingue, Le DSveloppement
du Langage observi chez un, 76
Ergonic aspect of study, 74
— Chart, 190, 191, 266, 271, Appen-
dix I
— combination, 122, 125, 126, 127
— theory, lectures on, 166, 167, 168
Ergonics, definition of, 46, Appen-
dix II
— living, 191-196
— unit of, 45
Ergons, classification of, 45, 46,
Appendix II
— minor, 125
Error, factor of, 112, 119, 121, 236, 263
Errors, correction of, 231, 232, 233,234
Etymological aspect of study, 74
— cognates, 44
— identity, 33-39
— theory, lectures on, 163, 164
Etymology, 213
— definition of. Appendix II
— unit of, 44
Etymon, 125
— definition of. Appendix II
— the, is the unit of etymology, 44
Exercises, articulation, 148, 149, 152,
153, 154, 158
— comprehensive and descriptive
list of, 207-224
— conversion, 212
— ear-training, 132, 145, 150, 151, 158
— intellectual, 209-224, Appendix II
— mechanical, 207-209, Appendix II
— missing word, 224
— retranslation, 224
— semi-mechanical, 209-224
— systematic conjugation, 184-190
— transcription, 209
Expediency, considerations of, in
selecting matter, 129, 130, 131
Explanations, 243-251
Eye-memory, 276
Fallacies, popular, 121
'PaUacy of the Direct Method,' 83,
84, 85, 92
' Fallacy of the monolog,' 41
First lesson, specimen of, 142-146
Fluency, 169
— necessity for, 119-122
— practice, 159, 160
Fluent comprehension, 169
Fourfold aim of the student, 12, 71
Frequency, principle of, 122-125
Functions of teacher, 238-269
Gesture, 127, 128, 133
Gradation, principle of, 14, 119-122,
240
Grammar, classical, 31
Graphic continuity, 11, 37-39, Ap-
pendix II
Gymnastics, 170
How to Learn a Language, 7
Ideal Standabd Programme, 14,
15, 138-224
Ignorance, utilization of, 49
Illegitimate importation, 263
Imaginary facility and difficulty, 22,
23
Imitation, oral, 52, 53, 54
Immediate comprehension and ex-
pression, 74, Appendix II
Imperative drill, 150, 151, 157
Incentive, 56, 69, 261
Incubation period, 13, 75, 76|
Inflexional identity, 36
Inflexions, 44, 163, Appendix II
— obsolete, 33
— information concerning, 247
Insecables, 45, 169, Appendix II
Instruments and tools, adequate
number of, 265, 266, 267
Integral translation, 210, 211, Ap-
pendix II
— memorizing, 112, 113, 117, 118, 119,
Appendix II
— units, 106, 109, Appendix II
Intellectual exercises, 209-224, Ap-
pendix II
Interest, 134, 261
Intermediate stage, 122
International Phonetic Association,
140
Intonation, 41, 42
" Intonation and Emphasis," 42
Intuition, 132
Irregular sentences, 116
Japanese, classical and colloquial,
63
Juxtaposition, 37, 38
Laconisms, 125
Language, definition of, 11, 19
— and Uterature, 11, 30, 31, 32, 276
Language-study, does the science of,
exist? 11, 19, 20, 21
— in empirical stage, 11, 19, 20, 21
Laws of memory, 55
Learning by heart, 103-119
Lessons by correspondence, 68, 69
Letter, the, is the unit of ortho-
graphy, 43
Lexicological sciences, 141, Ap.
pendix II
— units, 11, 39-46, Appendix II
Lexicology, 32, Appendix II
INDEX 325
Library, the language learners',
Literary dialect, 61
Literature and language, 11, 30, 31,
32, 202, 207, Appendix II
Living ergonics, 191-196
Localization, 55, 253, 254, Appendix II
Manifestations of language, 64,
Appendix II
Material association, 77-102, Ap-
pendix II
Memorizing, 13, 14, 23, 54, 103-119,
Appendix II
— integral, 103
Memory, 55
— systems, 253
— training, 56
— V, calculation, 103-119
Mental images, 254, 255
Method of discovery, 245, 246
Method for deducing grammar of
unwritten languages, 269, 270, 271
Method, Appendix II
— 'natural,' 77
— object of, 47
— writers, 24, 25, 27, 240
Methods of language-study, diver-
gent character of, 23
Microcosm, 14, 122-131, 170, 198, 205,
Appendix II
Minimals, Appendices I and II
Miologs, 12, 39, 40, 41, 42, 109, 110,
Appendix II
Miscellanea Phonetica, 42
Missionaries, 26
Mistaken haste, 274
Mnemonic aid, 85
Mnemonics, 253, Appendix II
Monolog, fallacy of, 41
Monologs, 12, 39, 40, 41, 42, 109, 110,
114, 164, 165, 166, Appendix II
— examples of, 40
Morphology or form, 12, 42, 43, Ap-
pendix II
Morphons, 125, Appendix II
Nonsense dictation, 158
326
STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Objective factors, 58
O'Grady, Hardress, 8, 311
Old-fashioned methods, 71
Old-fogeyism, 275
Oral imitation, 52
Organized method, 7, 8
Orientation of study, 59
Orthoepy, 221, 276, Appendix II
Orthographic aspect of study, 74
Orthography, French, 140
— unit of, 43, Appendix II
Passive use of language, 65, Ap-
pendix II
Passivity, uninterrupted, 135
Philology, 30, 31, 32, Appendix II
Philosophical language, 88
Phonemes, 43, Appendix II
Phonetic aspect of study, 74
— Association, symbols of the Inter-
national, 140, 247, Appendix III
— Chart, 266
— classification of units, 220, 221
— dictation, 154, 155
— reading, 153, 154
— symbols, 140, 161, 162, 163, 207, 208,
247, Appendix III
— theory, lectures on, 161, 162, 163
Phonetics, Appendix II
— information concerning, 247
— overdose of, 129
— theory of, 141
— unit of, 43
Phonograph, 262, 268
Phonology, unit of, 43, Appendix II
Pidgin, 64, 160, 235, Appendix II
Place a.^ociation, 85, 86, 254
Polylogs, 12, 39, 40, 41, 42, 109, 110,
115, 164, 166, 166, Appendix II
— examples of, 40
Prejudice, 274
Preliminaries, indispensable, 139
Preliminary equipment of student,
51
Preparation, advantages of ade-
quate, 170, 199
Primary matter, 103-119, 207, Ap-
pendix II
Principle of active and passive
work, 75, 76, 77
— of catenizing, 103-119, Appen-
dix II
— of the fourfold aim, 71
— of frequency, 122-125
— fundamental, of linguistic peda-
gogy, 47
— of microcosm, 122-131, Appen-
dix II
— of 'sack,' 239, 240
— of segregation, 72, Appendix II
— of subconscious comprehension,
131, 132, 133
— of visual correlation, 251-260
Principles of linguistic pedagogy, 12,
13, 14, 71-137
Programme, artificial, 201
— corrective, 16, 230-237
— direct, 95, 96
— documentary, 16, 228, 229, 230
— ideal, 14, 15,* 138-224
— limited, 16, 225-228
— natural, 200, 201
Programmes, special, 16, 225-237
— standard, 14, 15, 138-224
— undifferentiated, 203
Pronunciation exercises, 140
Proportion, 122, 128, 129
— principle of, 240, 241
Ptosonic, 271, Appendix II
Quack, language, 279
Question and answer group, 175-179
Questionnaire, 206, 267
— non-systematic, 179
— systematic, 172-179
Reading, 205, 206, 208
— phonetic, 153, 154
Reform method, 71, Appendix II
Regional dialect, 61
Regular sentences, 116
Retranslation, 223
Richards, S. A., 7
Ronjat, Jules, quotation from, 76
INDEX
327
Scientific method, 7, 11, 20, 26
Script, introduction of orthographic,
197,209
Secondary matter, 103-119, 218, Ap-
pendix II
Segregation, principle of, 13, 72, 73,
74, Appendix II
Self-instructibn, 68, 268, 260
Semantic aspect of study, 74
— cognates, 34, 35, 36
— demonstration, 77-102
— group, 44
— order, 134, 135
— theory, lectxires on, 164, 165, 166
— varieties, 165
Semanticizing, 13, 55, 77-103, Appen-
dix II
— direct, 95, 96
Semanticon, 44, 125, Appendix II
Semantics, unit of, 44, Appendix II
Sentence, definition of, 45
Shorthand, 104
So\md, the, is the unit of phonetics,
43, Appendix II
Sounds, numbering of, 148, 212
Sous-entendus, 41
Spatialization, 85, 86, 87, 191, Ap-
pendix II
Specimen lessons, 142-196
Spelling, conventional, 197
Stage, first or elementary, 15, 138-
168
— second or intermediate, 15, 168-
197
— third or advanced, 15, 198-207
Stages, 15, 169
— duration of, 15, 138, 168
Standard Programme, 14, 15, 138-224
Stimulus, 261
Stress, 41
Student, 48, 268-280
— bad, 17, 231, 274-280
— temperament of, 50
Study, Appendix II
— advantages and limitations of
conscious, 136, 137
— advantages and limitations of
subconscious study, 136, 137
Study, aggregative, 73
— aspects of, 74
— defective, 230
— degree of, 67, Appendix II
— disproportionate, 230
— extent of, 66, Appendix II
— manner of, 68
— orientation of, 59
— previous, 51
— subconscious, 73, Appendix II
Style, colloquial, 62, 227
— literary, 62
Subconscious comprehension, 142-
148, 155, 156, 157, Appendix II
principle of, 14, 131, 132, 183
— study, 122
advantages and limitations of,
136,137
Subjective factors, the four, 48
Substitution tables, 116, 127, 171, 180-
183, 209, 210, 214, 215, Appendix II
Superstitions, literary, 63
Syllable, 43
Synonyms, 44, 164, 165, 166, Appen-
dix II
Synopticity, 251-260, Appendix II
Syntax, 46
Systematic pronunciation exercises,
140
Teacher and student, relations
between, 17, 272, 273, 274
— casual, 269
— functions of, 16, 27, 238-267
— qualifications of, 16, 238, 250
Temporal dialect, 61
Terminology, 20
— necessity for new, 36
Texts, 204, 205, 206
Theory of memory, 55, 56
— of study, 55, 56
Transcription exercises, 209, Ap-
pendix II
Transition, point of, 122
Translation, 166, Appendix II
— as a mode of teaching meanings,
77-102
328
STUDY AND TEACHING OF LANGUAGES
Translation, basis of, 45
— integral, 210, 211
— rational, 80, 81
— the exclusion of, an unnatural
principle, 93
Uebersiehtlichkeit, 251-260, Appen-
dix II
Unit of language, 32-48, Appendix
II
— of phonetics, 43
— of phonology, 43
— of speech, 46
— of thought, 44
Universal language, 30
Vehicular language, 16, 249-^1
Vexed questions, 20, 21
Vicious tendencies, the six, 49, 117,
142, 203, 248, 260, 263, 264, 265
Visual correlation, principle of, 17,
251-260, Appendix II
Visualization, 17, 55, 251-260, Appen-
dix II
Waste of time, 275
Word, 30, 43
— difficulty of deiining the term, 11,
32-39, Appendix II
Word-groups, 36
Word-lists, 266
Words, cognate, 34, 35
— compound, 37, 38, 39
— counters of thought, 30
— evolution of, 37, 38, 39
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